The Alpha and the Omega
by Hitsuiro Issa
Summary: There's something new in town, something sinister. Somehow, Doumeki finds himself not strong enough to protect Watanuki from this new threat. Contains OC characters, and blood, but there's enough douwata to keep you happy. Rated T for now.
1. Every kind of Light

.

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: Slight dou/wata. The usual cast and OC introductions; more characters once the story progresses.

Rating: T for now (because there will be blood and yaoi. Haha.)

Disclaimer: xxxHolic characters are obviously not mine, but Haris and Iris Manson, and Vinx, is. 8D

-

**Every Kind of Light **

-

_Shadows lurk behind the brightest of light_

_Hope survives in the darkest of nights_

_What is safe may be otherwise at dark _

_Danger may hold dear your frantic heart_

-

Watanuki Kimihiro was practically used to his everyday routines, even if there wasn't school the next day; if he could avoid sleeping late, he would, but with the numerous tasks and dishes his employer had him do, that seemed impossible today. The moon was already out, illuminating the dark streets, when he was given the permission to go home.

"Are you sure you wouldn't want to stay?" Yuuko asked him as he strapped on his dark leather shoes, and he frowns at her as she did so; the only thing she had in mind, well, was breakfast. Right?

"I'll be fine," He assured her, the venomous tone lacking in his voice, but he didn't want to inject any of it right then. He was tired. "I have to be early tomorrow. And besides, I'm used to it."

'It' being chased around by irritating and persistent ayakashis that littered the streets.

"Should I call Doumeki for you?" the Dimensional witch then asks, twirling a silky lock of her own hair between fingers. She wasn't serious, of course, or maybe she was- Watanuki had never gotten used to her- but she was smirking, so well, it ticked him off.

"Nah, I'd rather run home screaming my head off than being walked home by him." He replied indignantly, bristling up like a cat. "Hmph! There is no way I'd give him opportunity to add another outrageous request in his bento!"

"Suit yourself, and good night, Watanuki." Yuuko smiled, waving her hand not caught up in her hair. "Have a nice trip home."

Watanuki returned the wave, nodded at an echoing Maru and Moro, and smiled briefly at a bouncing Mokona, before finally leaving the Shop and walking out into the open.

It was cold air that greeted him face first, and involuntarily he raised his shoulders at an attempt to embrace himself- frowning at the bag he was carrying. He glanced at his watch, mentally noting that it was still around eight, and there was no need to be alarmed or anything- the truly frightening ayakashis only prowled at around a later hour, especially when there was not a soul around. Watanuki cast a look at the streets before him; there was the occasional car passing or two, but no visible sign of people was there. Well, there was school tomorrow, so it was only to be expected that no teenagers- or parents, or children, and whatnot- were to be seen walking around.

But there was something heavy in the air, and he shivered again as another cold breeze hit him- why was his bag so heavy, and why did he feel too lazy to walk? He stifled a yawn behind his hand, momentarily closing his eyes; darn, he needed sleep.

That was when 'it' attacked.

When he opened his eyes, something big and slimy was wrapping him up in a snake-like embrace, and that 'thing' was gazing into his eyes. He let out a gasp as the grip on him tightened, and a long velvety tongue extended to lick the front of his glasses. Oh shit, perhaps it was a good idea to stay the night, or at least have Doumeki with him...

At the thought of the stoic archer, Watanuki heard a long yet audible hiss, and then the monster let him go. He dropped to his knees, eyes seeking his savior, but something else met his eyes.

Doumeki was standing a few good feet off, staring at a girl- the girl who was responsible for his safety. She wasn't anyone he was familiar with, even slightly; an intimidating girl with short, cropped chestnut hair, dark hazel eyes (just like Doumeki's, he huffs uncomfortably), and a stone face. If the she and Doumeki had joined a competition for the sternest look, it was unclear as to whether the archer would win at all. Something large moved behind her; but it was nowhere near harmful.

He wanted to say something, anything, but he still felt tired, and all he wanted to do was sleep.

And so he did.

-

The first thing that greeted him was, as always, the rather dull ceiling of Doumeki's room (he might as well die here, he thought wearily, seeing how frequently had he regained consciousness in his rival's place). He was still in his uniform, thank God, since he greatly despised how large Doumeki's spare clothes were on him, and it seemed uncomfortable to wear something his rival used to wear. He turned his head, expecting Doumeki to fill his view, but was instead greeted by a pair of insect-like eyes.

"Watanuki...awake!" the thing said in its scratchy, hissy voice, as Watanuki scrambled a good few meters away from the monster. The spirit seer cast his gaze around, spotting both his savior and Doumeki sitting comfortably on separate cushions, the girl sipping some tea. Watanuki was about to scream his head off at the two about the insect-creature before him when suddenly, the girl spoke.

"Aah, so you're awake. Vinx, kindly ease back a little, since you're scaring him quite a bit." Her tone was set on deadpan, no spark of humor or insult in her words. He couldn't even trace relief or annoyance, or anything at that.

"What..." he started, in which Doumeki interfered, that dumb asshole Doumeki, with a similar look of nonchalance as he nodded at the two 'unusual' guests he had in his room."Thank you for everything." He said coolly.

"No problem," the girl replied, taking her eyes away from Watanuki; she stood and made a gesture at the monster who was slowly inching away from the frightened spirit seer. "Vinx, let's go home."

Watanuki waited for awhile before turning on his friend; "Who the hell was that?" He hissed.

Doumeki sipped from his cooling cup, which was then laid forgotten on the tatami floor; "I don't know." He said with the least of emotions, as always, showing on his face.

Watanuki wanted to rant so badly. Badly enough for Doumeki to go deaf, he was sure. But things were as confusing now as it is- and no amount of complaining and insulting would help him at all, since, firstly, Doumeki had never been affected and two, he couldn't think of something to throw at the archer's face. Even if it did made him feel better.

"You can stay here if you'd like." came Doumeki's voice.

Uncharacteristically, however, Watanuki just looked at his companion, too tired to even shoot a glare. "I have to get home." He said quietly.

Doumeki stood, grabbing a coat from a nearby drawer. "Then I'll walk you home."

Watanuki was too tired to protest, even.

-

His fatigue was clearly evident on his face the next day, since even Himawari- clueless and dense little Himawari- had noticed his lack of vigor. Or maybe, without the flailing and twirling and fawning over, it was a tad too obvious.

"Do you lack sleep?" She asked quietly, concern in her voice, and though normally Watanuki would clutch at his heart and think, this is it, it's her love, well.

He resolved to smiling back at her, although somewhat tiredly.

"Jaa, I'm okay, Himawari-chan-" He raised a hand to stifle a yawn- "I guess I do, though."

They were whispering quietly to converse, with the teacher explaining something in the front, but it was their homeroom period already. There wasn't really a need to pay attention, and Watanuki was paler than usual, so Himawari took it upon herself to focus on her friend.

"Well, maybe you should take a nap in the infirmary," she suggested with a small smile, but he waved the thought away; "No, I'm fine. Besides, I think there's an important announcement Tsukomi-sensei has to say."

And, true enough, as the two drew back their eyes towards the teacher in front, Tsukomi had only finished his sentence, and was gesturing for someone outside the classroom door to enter. Watanuki could see from his position that it was a girl, since her hesitance caused her skirt to flow a bit, just enough not to show her underwear, but enough for him to recognize the green skirt. Well, it's a girl, he thinks with a sigh.

The said student entered somewhat slowly, fiddling with her thumbs, and Watanuki couldn't help but notice how...cute she was. But there was no other connection, so, oh well.

"My name is Iris Manson," She says, growing bolder as she spoke, her Japanese accent a slightly foreign one; "I'm a temporary transferee, so while I'm still here, nice to meet you all."

"From where?" One of the boys in class asked, and Watanuki couldn't help himself roll his eyes. I mean, geez, he thinks. Isn't that a little too sudden to ask?

Or perhaps it wasn't, and she answered the inquiring boy with a sweet smile. "I'm from Los Angeles. Me and my twin Haris moved here since our father had a little project in Japan."

Watanuki couldn't help himself. There was something about her that seemed familiar. "You speak straight Japanese. Did you learn how?"

She gave him a shrug; "Just quite." She responded. "I'm sure my sister is doing a bit better."

Tsukomi, their homeroom teacher, smiled kindly at the new student before any more questions could be asked; "Please take a seat now, Manson-san. You can sit beside Himawari-san right there."

As soon as Iris took her seat, and Himawari immediately starting a friendly conversation with her new seatmate, Watanuki realized that she looked like the girl that saved him the previous night.

In the distance, the bell for lunch rang.

-

"I'm sorry I didn't bring any bentos," Watanuki apologized, setting down the only three he had, smiling sadly at Iris. The said girl was sitting on her forelegs beside Himawari, smiling back at him. "No, it's okay. You didn't expect me anyway." Well yeah, that was true. But Watanuki was used to making bentos for all the people he ate lunch with, and though that only contained Himawari and, begrudgingly, Doumeki, Iris was someone Watanuki wanted to treat as well.

Iris Manson was, first of all, a pretty girl. She had a somewhat Asian build despite her American heritage; the way her face was shaped, for instance, and the way her eyes slanted quite a bit upwards. Well, she's not Japanese- perhaps Chinese of the sort- and her skin color was white, with rosy cheeks and chestnut hair, and not pale like the spirit seer's. Her eyes were a fascinating hazel, and he was reminded of the mysterious girl he had met the night before- Iris had mentioned a twin, right? So maybe, she was...

"Besides, I made my sister and myself some bento as well, so there's no need for you to fuss over me." Iris continued on brightly, bringing the bespectacled boy from his stupor. "Oh..." he started, looking at the girl."...you can cook?"

"She always cooks, anyway." Came a voice, and Watanuki immediately linked its resemblance to the mysterious girl's own last night. "In fact, she deals with all the household matters."

"Oh, Haris. Not everything," laughed Iris as her twin took a seat beside her; "I bet I'm not as good as Watanuki-kun, since it's my first time to actually prepare a bento, ne, Watanuki-kun?"

The bespectacled boy wasn't listening, however, since his attention was focused onto the newly-arrived female, Haris.

"You-"

"Oh, it's you, Watanuki-kun." She cut across him, rather nonchalantly.

Before he could say anything else, Doumeki arrived, late as usual, and without a word took his own bento from Watanuki's side. Because of this, the surprise on the spirit seer's face quickly disappeared, replaced by a look of indignation as he turned on the archer.

"YOU UNGRATEFUL, BOTTOMLESS PIT-STOMACHED JERK--"

"Hello Doumeki-kun." Smiled Himawari, and Doumeki nodded as he chewed on a delightfully delicious piece of onigiri, all the while ignoring Watanuki's insults at him.

Watanuki halted in his tirade, huffing angrily at Doumeki, before he handed Himawari her own bento and opened his. That stupid jerk, he thinks sourly. That stupid, idiotic, annoying son-of-a--

"Watanuki-kun," he brought his head up at Iris' voice; "Are you alright?"

He wasn't looking as vibrant as usual, only perhaps worked up. But he looked disheveled, in a way. "Um. yeah. Oh--" He turns to address the girl's twin- "Thank you so much for last night, Haris-chan."

The girl in question raised her eyebrows at him, and he could swear there was an underlying smirk in her lips. "Just passing by, I guess."

"I see now!" Iris smiled then, looking from Watanuki then at her sister; "Haris saved you from a monster, right?"

"Really. It was a good thing me and Vinx decided to fly by that night, but then again, he was about to save our damsel in distress," Haris nodded at Doumeki. "You've been doing that sort of thing for quite some time, correct?"

Doumeki grunted his reply, and then reached for an onigiri in Watanuki's bento, since his own had finally run out.

"Don't touch that," Watanuki snapped at the archer, who decided it best to not comply, as always. "And besides, it's not as if Doumeki-kun saves me all the time."

His statement led to an awkward pause, with both Haris and Doumeki staring blankly at him, and the other two females smiling brightly.

"Okay, fine. All the time then-" He turns to Doumeki. "But that doesn't mean anything."

"Hn." Was the reply, and the bell rang.

-

"Are you going to take long?"

The question brought Watanuki's head out from underneath his table. Beside him was the window, gently beaming at them with an orange-colored ray, and the clock in the front of the class ticked the minutes away, as Watanuki straightened himself to look at his companion. Doumeki was standing by the door, his school bag and sports sack in one hand, the other in his pocket. He had on his face the usual blank look. It was a surprise and a relief that Doumeki didn't start with a one-word sentence, like 'oi' for instance.

"Well, I'll have to stop by the library," Watanuki replied, sighing a bit as he closed his school bag. "You can leave now if you want."

Doumeki ignored the suggestion, looking around a bit as he approached the spirit seer. "Iris and Himawari went home together, then?"

"Yeah," was the reply. "And what of Haris?"

The archer stopped a foot away from Watanuki, staring down at him, even if the bespectacled boy was standing to his full height, an impressive 5'7. "She said she needed to attend to something," Doumeki shrugged; "Well, it's none of my business. But she left for the rooftop."

Watanuki clutched at the bag at his side, making a movement to leave. He paused half-way. "Are you coming?"

"Do I have any other choice?" Doumeki said coolly, closely following his friend.

They walked in silence for a while, Watanuki walking somewhat hesitantly before the archer, who was just as calm- and as quiet- as usual. The sun had fully set when they reached the library.

Out of the corner of his eye, something moved in the darkness. Watanuki gulped involuntarily as he pushed open the double doors, careful to not direct his eyes at the shadows for long. Doumeki noticed his discomfort, and placed a large hand on the spirit seer's shoulder.

"Where?" He asked, instead of what, since he had trusted Watanuki and his instincts since long ago. He pressed his chest against the seer's back, earning an almost inaudible gasp. He did not bother to step back, though- nor did Watanuki bothered to move away- since this was Doumeki's initial way of protecting him- and of showing concern.

Watanuki bit his lip, trembling slightly. The alarm bells had stopped sounding in his head, and carefully he placed his hand on Doumeki's own, which was lying on his shoulder. When he thought the danger was truly gone, though, and was about to turn on Doumeki for no particular reason, there was a sound of glass breaking that alarmed the two.

Instinctively, Doumeki grabbed Watanuki and gently pushed him out of the way, before running quickly towards the sound. Somehow, after a recent incident, Doumeki disliked the sound of breaking glass, and whenever such a noise came, adrenaline would surge through his veins as he would run towards the sound with hopes of nobody being underneath its dangerous pile. This certain occurrence, however, held no bloody victim beneath, nor did it hold anything innocent- for, as Doumeki gazed out of the shattered windows of the dark library, he could see a lone figure running towards the woods, desperately trying to escape the evidence littering upon the ground.

It wasn't human, Doumeki was sure.

"Hey, what happened-" Watanuki asked as he reached his stoic companion, whose eyebrows were scrunched up in deep thought. The spirit seer followed his friend's gaze, but by then the figure had disappeared within the vast and numerous trees.

"Are you alright?" Doumeki's voice was slightly frantic, and Watanuki could feel himself tremble at the emotions surfacing in his friend's golden eyes. Large hands took hold on each of his arms, and the archer gently shook the spirit seer, not wanting to take the silence as an answer. "Watanuki, are you alright?"

"Y-yeah," came the reply, faintly. Eyes of blue and gold met Doumeki's own; "Doumeki, stop worrying..."

Exactly. Why was he worrying? Whatever that being was, it did not harm Watanuki in any way, and the fear lacing the spirit seer's voice was made just because Doumeki was acting strangely, and not because he had been hurt. No. Watanuki was safe, so why was he worrying so much?

Something was amiss.

"I'm just...glad you're alright." Doumeki said gently, easing his grip. "You're safe now."

With that, he pulled a slightly befuddled Watanuki into his arms, encasing the boy protectively within his embrace. In the distance, a faint scream reverberated through the trees, unheard by the two.

-

Whatever it was following her, it was gaining on fast.

Her steps slowly became more panicked, and she could feel tears sliding down her cheeks as she made her way through the dark trees, her long curly hair waving behind her. She hiccupped badly, bringing a hand to her mouth to strangle another cry- if she made a sound, the thing would only find her much quickly.

She was so scared. Despite the fact that she brought bad luck to others, she had never been so frightened in her whole life- and there was no one to save her! She dared not scream for help, just wanting to get out of the forest, and run towards Doumeki's temple or to Yuuko's...

Pain shot up her right leg, and immediately she tumbled down, landing on her front. She could feel something approaching, and she turned her head, tears streaking freely down her face, her mouth opened in a silent scream-

And darkness engulfed her.

-

A/N: Chapter one is over. This plot has been cooking in my head for sometime, you know? It's a relief to be able to vent it out. It's a start. OwO I truly hope I finish this multi-chapter. So if you guys want me to, then please review. PLEASE! Don't just read. Tell me what you think. Or else you'll never ever know how this ends. So yeah. Blackmail! Writers need reviews. Without them, how will we know what the readers think? How will that help the story? See? I've got a point. So click that button over there and send me your rants- and raves. Anyway, I'm sending chapter two early anyway. X3

This will be the last thing in this chapter:

REVIEW YOU HUMANS. xD


	2. Danger

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: Slight dou/wata. The usual cast and OC introductions; more characters AND more elaborative pairings once the story progresses.

Rating: T for now (because there will be blood and yaoi. Haha.)

Disclaimer: xxxHolic characters are obviously not mine, but Haris and Iris Manson, and Vinx, is. 8D

-

**Danger **

-

_There's nothing pleasant in this endless tirade_

_So halt in your steps before the moment fades; _

_Do you hear the footsteps echoing behind us? _

_Sometimes there is no one you can really trust _

-

They lived in a rather nice flat. It was big enough for three people to live in comfortably, well supplied with decent furniture, and still-new appliances. But with the absence of their father, and Vinx to replace him, the flat sometimes proved to be a bit small and tight.

Vinx was huge. Inside the house, he could only crawl, and though he was at comfort this way, his wings were a tad too big for the confines of their small home.

It was only sometimes that Haris let Vinx into the house, since in the daylight the monster could not be seen by ordinary humans- today was not one of those days wherein Vinx was allowed inside, but the poor beast was hungry, and had snuck in for a loaf of bread or two.

It only took a few seconds before Vinx was roughly pushed out again, as Haris had caught him half-way to the kitchen, and with his wings grazing against one of the paintings on the wall; the slight action had caused much noise, to Vinx's horror, and quite suddenly he was thrown out by an angry Haris.

"How many times must I tell you that whenever you need something, just call?" Haris' voice lacked emotion, but Vinx noted the underlying note of danger in her tone. Haris meant business, and sadly, Vinx was at fault.

"B-but..." Vinx gulped, willing his tongue to continue, the mental language for human communication kicking in full gear. "Vinx hungry!"

"I know you're hungry," Came Haris' distinct growl. She reached behind her and tossed two loaves of bread at the insect creature, which happily caught it and proceeded to eat. "If you enter the house without my permission again, you will stay hungry for two weeks." And with that, she banged the door.

Haris wasn't entirely mean. She held a soft spot for her twin and the monster outside, no matter how stern and cruel she was when dealing with them. Being the athletic tough one of the two sisters, she had always taken it upon herself to protect what's left of their family- what with her mother dying at giving birth, and her father working his life away- she couldn't help but be a little too overprotective over the two. All her life she had shut the doors of her heart against any other, willing that, in time, her emotions would disappear, and she could fully prepare herself for the cruelty and treachery of the world.

Haris pushed back a lock of chestnut colored hair as she sat before the breakfast table, with her other hand reaching for the morning paper. Ever since the twins had found Vinx, it became Haris' purpose to fight away the monsters that both twins could detect- thanks to their heritage- and since the monsters tended to disturb Iris a lot. It didn't bother her at all, though, since she was used to seeing and fighting such beings from the early age of eight.

Steely auburn eyes scanned through the columns of Japanese characters, no trace of confusion brimming within the orbs. Haris had found learning Japanese quite easy; she was as good at reading and writing as she was good at speaking the said language. And so, as she set down the paper, and as Iris finally came up to greet her a good morning, Haris had fully understood what the article was about, and what danger lay ahead.

"Iris, I'm skipping school today. There's something I need to do." she told her twin sister as the said teenager settled herself across Haris; "Will you please tell Doumeki?"

Well. Old habits don't die.

-

Watanuki was used to fawning over a certain Himawari every time they met at school. It became a part of his life- and he never got sick of it, since, nothing else really happened after the fawning over. Himawari was naive, and if he was too, nothing would ever develop between them. But Himawari was more to Watanuki other than an object to fuss over; Himawari was one of Watanuki's good friends.

And so, as the bell for the first period rang, Watanuki couldn't help but frown at the empty seat where Himawari was supposed to be. He knew for a fact that the girl rarely had troubles with the supernatural, no matter how unlucky she was. He decided not to worry much- she's probably in a family outing, he thinks- but somehow, he couldn't shake away the concern in his heart.

Iris looked back at him, and they shared a somewhat sad smile. "Ne, Watanuki-kun, is Himawari-chan sick?"

Watanuki slowly shook his head, not really sure what to say. "Himawari was fine yesterday...she's with her family, though, so I think she's okay."

With her family. Somehow, Watanuki had always thought that people in their family's care would always be alright. They would have parents to take care of them, siblings to have fun with, and they wouldn't be lonely. He gave out another sad smile at Iris, who understood...somewhat. She still had her twin.

"Well, I think it's a good idea to drop by her place later on," Iris began slowly, propping up her head with her palm, the elbow leaning on the back of her chair; "We could bring her homework for today too."

Watanuki nodded, his glasses glinting in the morning light; "That's a good idea, Iris-chan. Let's do that."

They stopped talking after that statement, and the day slurred with Watanuki not really concentrating on anything. He didn't even launch into a complain when Doumeki didn't show up at lunch, and Haris' own absence seemed expected too, since Iris didn't bother bring the topic up, instead engaging with Watanuki in something else. Soon after, as the spirit seer and the almond-haired twin stared worriedly at the horizon beside them, behind the glass windows; the sun had finally gone down, the skies colored in a beautiful red and orange glow. The bell then rung for dismissal.

"Might as well get going," started Kimihiro; he had slung his own bag over his shoulder, Himawari's books in his other hand. "If we're planning to stay a little longer, we should go early."

He was starting to think of what to explain to Yuuko when he'd arrive late at the shop when a familiar tone was spoken.

"Oi."

"Doumeki-kun!" Iris greeted happily. "I was wondering what kept you earlier."

"I had something to attend to. Didn't have lunch." The archer turned to Watanuki, who was adjusting his grip on the school books. "You still have my bento, right?"

"Of course I do!" replied the spirit seer angrily, turning away. "But we're going to visit Himawari-chan first, you selfish prick, so I'm just going to leave you--"

"Is Kunogi in trouble?" Doumeki cut in, directing his question at Iris (since she wasn't ranting or flailing or anything, unlike Watanuki).

"Um. I guess you could say that." She frowned a bit. "Want to come along?"

Doumeki gave a mere grunt, but with an approving nod. Iris smiled at him. "Shall we get going?"

The three then left the classroom, out of the building, and into the cooling winds of sunset.

-

Watanuki was usually fine with visiting Himawari, but as the final rays of sun bathed them with a slightly calming glow, the spirit seer couldn't help but shiver. Something else was in the air, besides the outer pleasantries- something sinister. Watanuki hated how clear it felt in his soul, and how it sent shivers running up and down his spine, and how vague it seemed to be. He gave out a sigh, staring at the backs of his two companions- the ever-so stoic Doumeki, and Iris Manson. But where was her twin?

There was something about the Mansons Watanuki couldn't understand either. Though Iris was friendly, talented, and a whole-lot pretty, her sister Haris was a lot more suspicious. He had heard the said girl was a real star at sports; Doumeki had once stated that she was doing good in academics; she didn't seem like a haughty pushover, but then, Haris was just as silent as Doumeki. What scared him most (and it was fear obviously) about the other twin was the look in her eyes. They weren't cold, no, but they weren't friendly either. In fact, they seemed rather hostile.

Watanuki gave Iris' back a sad look. Did Haris treat her sister any better? Indeed, Iris looked healthy and contented with what she had, and never did he see any sign of bruise or cut on her skin. Haris maybe hostile against other people, but towards her own sister, she was the opposite. Like some sort of guardian since Iris obviously couldn't take care of herself.

"Iris," began Watanuki, remembering another absence he hadn't pondered over; "Where's Haris?"

"Hm. She said she had something to do, so she couldn't come to school." Iris laughed a bit. "She's alright, don't worry."

Yeah. Unlike Himawari, and so like Doumeki, Haris can take care of herself. Besides, Iris seemed untroubled by it, so why should he worry?

They finally reached Himawari's house, only finding it empty. Doumeki went up the fleet of stairs before the main door, ringing the doorbell twice. Still, no one came.

"A family trip?" Suggested Iris, which Doumeki shook his head over. "Most unlikely," he said. "They wouldn't leave without saying anything."

"Why don't we ask the neighbors?" Watanuki asked, gesturing towards the man maintaining his garden beside the Himawari residence.

"Excuse me sir, good afternoon." Iris bowed towards the man. "Where's Kunogi-chan? And why is there no one in the house? Have they gone to a family trip?"

"Kunogi's been missing." Replied the gardener. "Never came home last night. Her parents are down in the Police station, looking for help. They left this morning." The man nodded at the house. "Been quiet, alright."

"R-really?" Iris said, after a while, eyes widening; "That's terrible!"

"Thanks for your help," Doumeki said quickly, before Watanuki could say anything. "We'll be going now."

The three left silently, with the gardener bidding them goodbye. "Take care, kids!" He waved. "And good luck."

-

Watanuki fumbled with his bag, his legs pushing slightly at the ground, causing the swing he was sitting on to sway a bit. Doumeki and Iris sat before him, on the weird animal-shaped benches jutting out the sand, with Iris looking skittish and Doumeki looking...very Doumeki.

"Oh god, I'm worried about Himawari-chan."

The statement hung in the air. They were all worried, and perhaps Doumeki was too, but with the usual blank expression on his face, it wasn't obvious. But then, Watanuki recalled the panicked eyes and tense shoulders when Doumeki did fuss over him- now that was, loud and clear, worry. So what was going in the archer's mind right then? He's just hiding it, thought Watanuki, since Iris is here and I am too.

"She must've screamed last night." Doumeki monotoned.

Watanuki gave him a look of confusion. "Last night?" He asked. "Do you mean in the woods..."

Doumeki gave a curt nod, seemingly unaffected by the suggestion. "Yes. She probably was caught off by whatever jumped from the library window last night."

"Oh dear. Then she's kidnapped." Iris trembled slightly. "We- we have to do something!"

"Kidnapped," Watanuki repeated, staring at the ground. "She's still alive though, right?"

"Last night's creature was no human, Watanuki. We can't be sure if she's still alive." Doumeki huffed. "But then, since Kunogi isn't as popular as you in the other world, she might still be in one piece."

"Doumeki-kun, don't say things like that," whispered Iris, just barely, and the three were bathed in silence.

There was a sort of sniffing sound behind them, and as always, it was Watanuki who looked first.

A pair of large insect eyes met his bi-colored ones.

Watanuki let out a brief shout before backpedalling, his back colliding with Doumeki's knees. Iris took the creature's presence a whole lot more enthusiastically, though.

"Vinx!" She cried, launching herself to hug the monster, and with shared delight Vinx returned her embrace, mewling and purring like a cat, despite his appearance.

"Sounds like you," Doumeki commented, his statement only for Watanuki to hear.

"WHY YOU-"

"Haris investigating," purred Vinx, loud enough to halt whatever Watanuki had to say; "Haris looking for missing girl!"

"That's great! Where is she?" Somehow, his recent fears of the monster dissipated, and he hurriedly ran towards the hugging pair. "Will you tell us, Vinx?"

Vinx scrunched up his face in thought, and then smiled. "Vinx say where, Watanuki friend. In forest," with that he pointed at a direction where the trees lessened.

Iris stared at the place, frowning sadly. "I'll stay here, with Vinx." She said; "There's really nothing I can do."

Watanuki was about to reassure her and tell her she's been a great help, but Doumeki grabbed his arm and started pulling him to the trees. "Take care, Iris."

As the two boys entered the forest, Watanuki trembled, causing Doumeki to tighten his grip. "I'm here," He told his friend quietly. Normally Watanuki would have screamed at him, anything, but Doumeki's hand was warm against his arm. Besides, he was grateful for the archer's presence.

The air started to grow heavy, and somehow, Watanuki's steps slowed. His breathing caused little clouds to form before his mouth, and his legs were starting to slow. Doumeki noticed the change, lowered his hand holding Watanuki's arm, only to entangle his finger between the other's own. The movement caught Watanuki by surprise- momentarily delaying the effect of whatever spirit lurking around them.

"D-doumeki..."

"Are you alright, Kimihiro?"

Watanuki blushed at the sound of his first name, looking away. It felt awkward now, and he longed for something to scream at Doumeki- but his hand, like earlier, was warm and nice, and it lessened the fear pooling in his stomach.

"Yeah, I'm- AAAAH!"

Something jerked Watanuki's hand from him- and not only his hand, but his entire self as well. Doumeki reached out to grab the spirit seer's fleeting form, screaming himself hoarse. He can't lose Watanuki this way, no, he could not.

Watanuki could feel strings as soft as silk wrap around his limbs, pulling him away from Doumeki's safety. He shut his eyes and let out the scream swimming in his throat, and his head rocked heavily as his body came in contact with a sticky yet soft wall, wrists and ankles secured by thin strips of the same essence. He dared to look down at Doumeki, who was staring up at him, and then at the web, before whipping around to find a gigantic tarantula prowling towards him.

-

A/N: There you go~ Chapter two is done and in the bag! It's so far so good. Haha. I'm starting with chapter three now- so, with not much further ado, I shall end chapter two now. Just don't forget to review, m'kay? Remember what I said~ If humans need bread and water for nourishment, authors need love and the words from their readers. Amen. X3

EDIT: Oh yeah, spotted the -kun thing. Wahaha. It's gone now. xD


	3. Trapped

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: Slight dou/wata. The usual cast and OC introductions; more characters AND more elaborative pairings once the story progresses. Hopefully.

Rating: T for now (because there will be blood and yaoi. Haha.)

Disclaimer: xxxHolic not mine. But I do own something, amen.

-

**Trapped**

-

_These are chains, although rusty and old; _

_Chains that will forever keep you in its hold_

_Struggle not, speak not, there's nothing you can do_

_Worry not; the day ends yet there's someone for you _

-

Ever since Doumeki had met Watanuki Kimihiro, the stoic archer's life had gone from mundane to dangerous. Every step of the way Watanuki was haunted by different kinds of ethereal beings- harmless or otherwise- and since Doumeki had in his veins the ability to ward such beings away- and better yet, the ability to actually kill them- the archer had taken it upon himself to make sure that Watanuki's 'special' soul would not get the young spirit seer in danger.

And so, every once in a while, Doumeki finds his hand automatically stretching out to pull his naive friend out of harm's way- figuratively and literally- and often finds himself at a guilty loss when he fails to do so.

"Watanuki!" Doumeki screamed, letting the usual stoic facade fall, as he flung out his arm in a dire attempt to reach the spirit seer.

He was on his way towards where the bespectacled boy was entangled when something hard hit him across the side of his head, causing him to stumble to the left. Doumeki raised a trembling hand to his cheek, where the monster hit him- and frowned at the blood he found in his palm. He turned his gaze behind him, standing with a new found composure, reaching for the bow that was always strapped on his back- and positioning himself to fire.

The monster was a gigantic tarantula- enough to scar children and adults alike, with each joint of its hairy legs almost as tall as ordinary houses; with eight eyes swirling within their sockets, first glaring hungrily at Watanuki, then at him; and worst of all, the dark ebony fangs glinting from beneath the spider's thin lips, saliva- or something else poisonous, he wasn't sure- dripping from their treacherous points. Something glinted from the underside of the creature's belly- it was some sort of gem, but the archer couldn't find any purpose for it, so stored that information within the depths of his mind. Doumeki himself couldn't help but feel a momentarily spasm of shock and fear lick through his body- but not for too long, since the monster decided it best to attack right then and there.

He let go of the string, and there came an audible hiss as the purification arrow made its way towards the creature's forehead, and for a brief moment Doumeki found himself almost smiling- and praying- that it would all be over, since his arrows had never failed him, even once- but as the arrow fulfilled its purpose, embedding into the creature's skull, nothing happened. In fact the spider swatted it away from its head, and bringing down a massive claw that knocked the astounded archer of his feet.

His head came into contact with a heavy boulder- almost successful in knocking him unconscious, but for some reason, he was able to stay awake. He had his teeth in a firm lock; his hands were balled into fists, one with the slender bow beneath his tense fingers. His cheek started to sting again with pain, and his vision swam; as the monster stalked its way towards him, he wondered idly if this was how he would end.

From the corner of his eye he noticed a slender figure jumping out from the trees and coming full contact with the hissing creature. Something long and slightly cylindrical was being driven into one of its eyes, and the spider's thrashing and screeching resounded in the forest, making Doumeki almost want to cover his ears. Yet his limbs felt like they were heavy with lead, and his eyelids seemed to heavy with tire; whoever that person was, he was doing a better job, and Doumeki was ready to hand over the responsibility for the moment.

"Doumeki!" screamed a familiar, female voice, and his eyes snapped open towards the figure atop the spider's head. The person was, quite expectedly, Haris Manson.

The girl was proceeding to beating the monster's head with a baseball bat in one hand, the other held firmly around the steel pipe jutting out of the creature's eye. She was having trouble keeping her position with all the shaking the spider was doing; it wouldn't be far now to see her fall off.

Well, there was nothing he could really do. The spider was some sort of mutant, something his spiritual powers couldn't defeat yet. Knowing Haris, she might have something else up her sleeve, and she would not stand for defeat- so it was safe to say that somehow, the situation was still under her control. So it wouldn't hurt if he allowed himself to sleep for a while...

"D-doumeki! Wake up, you big oaf!"

Such a statement would not have succeeded in annoying the stoic archer, but suddenly he was reminded of the situation, and the state Watanuki was in. If he were to die, it'd be better if the spirit seer was safe first. The familiar scream jolted him out of his own weakness, and with trembling slowness he moved to look at his ward.

Watanuki was giving him a look that tore his heart apart- eyes narrowed in a surrendering, trapped way; there were tears building in the sides of his bi-colored eyes, and his glasses were askew, and his eyebrows were scrunched lightly in pain. But it was not only this that brought Doumeki entirely out of his reverie- it was the hundred of spiderlings making their way towards Watanuki, clicking their fangs happily for dinner.

"Kimihiro!" He started, standing to his feet with shaking legs; his voice was hoarse, trembling, weak; "H-hold on..."

It took him much willpower to conjure up another spirit arrow, and another, and another...but somehow, even if the spiderlings were being pushed back by his pursuit, it wasn't enough. There was too many of them.

"Doumeki, destroy the mother first." He heard the steely voice of Haris over the deafening screeches of the giant spider; "Aim for its vital point! One shot would be enough."

Her voice was like hope brimming in the darkness; her advice was like a savior to him. Nodding, and regaining his archery composure, he aimed at the underside of the spider- where he had first caught sight of a glinting gem- and fired.

The result, unlike earlier, was instantaneous. The spider reared up, thrashed around a bit, and fell to the floor after Haris had safely jumped of its back. As immediately, the spiderlings fell to curl up and die, and Watanuki's screams of pain was lessened to a still audible breathing. Doumeki dropped his bow and ran to the other boy, tearing apart his silk prison with his bare hands- not caring if there was another grudge to be formed- and held the whimpering boy in his arms.

With all the wounds and blood, he couldn't identify Watanuki any longer. His smooth face was laden with scratches across the cheeks, his precious blood sliding down his face, mixed with sweat and tears. Every movement to the boy was like a whip lashing at his skin- and the saltiness of his own tears only pained him much more. Doumeki stared, unbelieving, and hated himself for being so weak. The spirit seer's breaths came in slow intervals, as if his lungs were still forcing him to breathe a lot of air, and the eyes- those usually bright and wonderful golden and blue eyes- were screwed shut, in disappointment or in tears, he did not know.

He held Watanuki close, trembling terribly with self-hate and worry, as Haris made her way towards them. He couldn't bring himself to look up- Watanuki's state was as blinding as it was haunting- and was thankful that Haris didn't bother breaking the silence for even a little while.

There was a comforting hand on his shoulder, yet he disregarded it.

"He'll be fine," was Haris reassurance, and somehow it was the only thing he needed.

-

Haris was polite enough not to disturb Doumeki while he was fussing over the spirit seer, and quietly proceeded to collecting her steel pipe and baseball bat before approaching the two.

In her sight, they were pathetic. Sometimes she's surprised by her own coldness, that she never really seems human anymore. Seeing Doumeki break down like this shook her to the core- if he could lose all his stoicism over someone like Watanuki, what much more if Iris falls the same way? The emotionless twin frowned at the thought, and yet resulted to putting a hand on Doumeki's shoulder. They were still human, for goodness' sake.

"He'll be fine," she had told him, before he buried his face in the crook of Watanuki's neck, before she turned to fetch a cure hiding in her bag.

"The spiderlings aren't poisonous, Doumeki. Only the mother was," she nudged the bottle on his shoulder. "You need proper care too, with that gash on your cheek. Drink this."

His hands were trembling as he brought the medicine to his lips, but since then Doumeki had finally scavenged enough of his facade, he frowns instead of winces. The liquid is thick and bitter, and it slid uncomfortably down the archer's throat, who wished to spit it out immediately, but since Doumeki is Doumeki and he's certainly unlike Watanuki, Doumeki swallows it down with silence, looking up expectantly at Haris as if waiting for her to explain.

But she was planning to, anyway, so she complied.

"Those things aren't the only ones in this forest," She said quietly. "There are more."

Doumeki grunted, shifting a bit, letting Watanuki settle on his crossed-legs.

"Watanuki's lucky the spiderlings didn't get much from him," a pause. "It would be...terrible if they did."

Haris earned a look that clearly stated, "please-elaborate-you-heartless-bitch", yet she sighed instead. Sometimes, it was better to leave statements like hers hanging.

"And Himawari?" Doumeki voiced out, finally, and Haris found herself looking away, not because she was affected or anything; only because she found it necessary, and to a desired dramatic effect.

"She's home now," she replied, making her way to leaving the forest.

"Is she alright, Haris?" Doumeki called after her, but he's not the only one with control, oh no. Haris doesn't even bother looking back; much less did she bother to reply.

-

A/N: Aww, It's short. Dx I got real lazy all of a sudden, and since it would spoil the chapter if I would add the cut for the next, well. You'll just have to make do with this. Seriously. I hate this chapter. (sighs) Oh well. Reviews people, don't forget. xP

OMG I'VE REACHED CHAPTER THREE. This looks promising. Wahaha!

Oh yeah, thanks to the people for pointing something out. You know, Doumeki calling Watanuki with the suffix –kun. Haha. Now that I think about it, he's never called Watanuki like that. DX Oh well.


	4. Candle burn

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: dou/wata (it was slight earlier. Oh well). The usual cast and my OC characters; more characters AND more elaborative pairings once the story progresses. Hopefully.

Rating: T for now (because there will be blood and yaoi. Haha.)

Disclaimer: xxxHolic not mine. But I do own something, amen.

-

**Candle burn**

-

_The lights are skittish and unsure_

_As they dance within the darkness; _

_And there's repeated tapping upon the door_

_I fear it much; do you no less? _

-

Watanuki was slack against his body, bony arms tangling with his own. He had the boy pressed against his chest, as if it would provide comfort, though the way he was walking would disrupt whatever comfort there was to the sleeping man. Indeed, in his stride were only panic and desperation; he feared that if he arrived a moment too late, there wouldn't be enough of Watanuki to care for. Each step caused him to bounce a bit on his heels, and Watanuki's head lolled to bump softly against his arms, and his hands would slip from the safety and dangle beneath him. Doumeki wondered if his attempt to bring the spirit seer to heal would only further his pain.

But Watanuki, thank the gods, was asleep. No amount of shaking and bouncing stirred him from his slumber, and he was breathing enough for Doumeki to notice- and he was thankful for such a small mercy.

He walked past the shrine gates and quickly made his way towards the living room, nodding slightly at the figure he knew was Yuuko as he carefully placed Watanuki down on the floor. He didn't want to ask the dimensional what she was doing here since it was so obvious- Watanuki was as precious to her as any of her alcohol. The archer could feel her crimson eyes on him as he proceeded to work on Watanuki's many wounds with a damp cloth and a bowl of water, working silently and efficiently as the rain began to fall.

The smell of damp ground was rather distracting, whether it was that or the opium pipe though, he couldn't tell. Somehow, halfway through the numerous padding and cleaning, he had lost to his subconscious to work; mindlessly stretching the bandages and wrapping it around the skinny arms; passing fingers over slightly cold skin, drawing shaky breaths as he would lean over slowly; well, it all seemed surreal to him.

What felt real though was the feeling of panic that climbed up his throat, like bile waiting to be spilled out. However calm his exterior appeared, he was figuratively dying inside, golden eyes glinting with strokes, hands lingering over places he knew Watanuki would disapprove of when he's awake, teeth clenching upon his lower lip just to keep himself from saying anything unnecessary.

It was Yuuko who broke the silence, though, as normal; he found it wrong to ignore her words, since the Dimensional Witch is always a Dimensional Witch, period- even if the said witch was a drunkard- and her words would always deem helpful in any situation. After all the time spent taking care of Watanuki and doing Yuuko's tasks, he knew her well enough that she had something useful to say- despite the fact that she looked a bit drunk.

"Doumeki-kun," came her voice, light and laden with alcohol; "You came from the forest, yes?"

Doumeki finished tidying up his mess before answering the time witch's question. "We encountered something there I couldn't exorcise easily." It was hard to decipher whether he was angry at himself or not, with the usual dead monotone he spoke with. But Yuuko knew. "The same thing, I presume, that is responsible for Himawari's disappearance." He grunted. "Or at least, that's what I think Haris was implying."

"There are always people who know a tad too much," Yuuko said commented quietly, watching her employer sleep; "And yet, in the end, they're not enough."

Doumeki stared at her blankly. "What do you mean?"

"I mean what it's supposed to mean." Yuuko told him. "Haris is still human, remember that."

"Hn."

"Anyway, Doumeki-kun." the time witch's elegant fingers had somehow got caught in his hair, but he's used to her touches, used to it enough that he's not even bothered. Not that he ever was. She was leaning uncomfortably close to his cheek, and it took him some control to keep himself from turning his head away; "Tell me. Why was it too hard to exorcise?"

And so he did.

He told her how his arrows only fell from the contact with the monster's head, how easy it was for it to unceremoniously bash him away, and how the spiderlings attacked Watanuki. He told her of Haris, who jumped out nowhere and told him what to do, and he told her of the nagging feeling of guilt and self-hatred once he saw the many wounds, and Watanuki's pained expression. All the time he spoke with a slightly wavering tone, but still holding firm, and on his face was the usual mask of stoicism, though it was harder for him to keep it that way. But it felt somewhat good to be able to tell someone all that, and as he finished, he had regained much of his shattered facade.

Yuuko held his face in her hands, allowing the silky strands of her hair to fall over his cheek. Her expression was firm. "Never lose faith in yourself, Doumeki-kun." She whispered lightly, breathing a bit on his skin; "If you do, there'll be none left for Watanuki, is there?"

He didn't understand her. He hated the way she always spoke in cryptic messages rather than getting her message across, especially when there was obviously no time for solving riddles and deciphering signs. He wanted so badly to point this out for her, and shoving his finger in her eye, but that wouldn't be a nice thing to do, especially if she had taken the liberty to actually listen to his sob story, and now she had at least given him a hint of what he should do next. Of some sort. And even if he was planning to say something, there was no time, since Yuuko had let his face go and had stood, making her way towards the door.

"I'll head back now," she said, looking at him; "Take care of Watanuki, alright? Good night."

He watched her leave, and the moment the door closed, the lights went out, and they were plunged into darkness.

Doumeki was, figuratively, used to being in the dark. Yuuko wasn't the kind of person who left such advices in a brighter light- in fact; just recently, he had been thrown completely into the dark. He had no idea why the monsters in the forest had taken Himawari; He had no idea if the Mansons were people he could trust, particularly the amber-eyed Haris; He wasn't sure if he was doing Watanuki a favor, or damning him; He wasn't sure if he could still hold purpose for the spirit seer, like right then before him, since he was so close to being too late.

The feeling of guilt was indeed overwhelming, and he leaned forward to align his forehead with Watanuki's own- barely daring to graze upon the light skin with his slightly contrasting fingers. An almost invisible welt had formed on his pointer and thumb, indicating where he had pulled the string of his bow repeatedly to fire with, was scrutinized as he rested his particular hand upon Watanuki's soft cheek; it was so dark though, and he sighed as he mentally kicked himself, well, get some candles you fool.

As much as he was used to Watanuki's unconscious presence, he was used to his surroundings. Of course, it's his house. He moved quickly in the shadows, a spark alighting where he had struck a match, and carefully decorating the room with a small lamp he had lit. He watched the flame dance for a while, the red and golden colors mixing in the hues of his orbs, before setting it beside the futon where Watanuki laid, shadows playing at the sides.

Images of earlier events played in his mind, drowning him with the renewed feelings of remorse- perhaps increased, since he had winced this time- and quite as suddenly anger floods in, making him want to grab Watanuki and just--well.

He knows full well that hurting the said spirit seer would only bring upon him death, not because he was cursed or anything, he supposed- but because Watanuki was, well, someone important to him, even more so after recent events.

It explained how dreary he felt as Watanuki lay before him, bathed in warm orange rays and dancing shadows, and how inexplicably useless he was. Compared to the spirit seer, he was stronger and more capable, of course, but the threats that had presented earlier in the forest had obviously drained him of not only his prowess, but also of confidence in himself as well.

He was so close to losing Watanuki. Again.

The reaction of his heart at the statement was instantaneous; a soft sob cracked from his lips as he struggled to keep the surge of what-could-have-been's from breaching his mind, not wanting to indulge in such depression- especially now that those what-could-have-beens were only as they were, and Watanuki WAS alive, and not dead from all those other encounters. Doumeki clutches at the fabric of his clothing; Watanuki was alive, and that was all that mattered.

But what if? Doumeki knew how unpredictable and how sometimes hitsuzen was slightly unjust, and that humans never really had that much understanding to comprehend the inevitable; he should be thankful enough that it wasn't Watanuki's time yet, and if it were, wouldn't it be a bit too soon? Doumeki had only recently realized the growing feelings he harbored towards the boy; it would be a shame if they stay hidden like that forever.

Doumeki's stare was becoming less heated, tired. The golden hues of his eyes had somehow dimmed, never straying from Watanuki's pale face; his fingers relaxed into the folds of his shirt as he gave yet another sigh. He wasn't persistent enough to keep at the scenes from playing, or to keep his guilt at bay; he had never been the type to go with the flow, but between breaking upon the onslaught of his emotions and being as stoic as he was outside, well. He thought of Haris and her promising presence, and it comforted him to know that if he were to fall, or he wasn't strong enough, she would help him, since despite her I-don't-care appearance, she actually did care about the people around her. The monsters that were now appearing in Japan weren't ordinary Japanese monsters- and perhaps her knowledge of foreign supernatural entities would be enough to save them all.

But there was one thought that continued to bother him: what good was he to Watanuki if he couldn't even protect him anymore?

His fingers were hesitant as they reached the spirit seer's face, calloused hands contradicting Watanuki's smooth skin and white bandages. He slowly caressed the skin, liking the feeling of softness in his hands, first trailing the side before lining the somewhat feminine curve of the jaw, cupping the other side of his cheek, tilting the head towards him.

Watanuki's mouth was slightly agape in his bliss; his long eyelashes caressed his skin with his eyes closed like that, his hair everywhere on the pillow. Even in his sleep, Watanuki looked extremely attractive- despite the bandages that covered his skin- and more vulnerable than he already was. Doumeki had long taken the pair of glasses that usually completed the spirit seer's look, having placed it somewhere else since Watanuki obviously did not need it for the time being. The archer could almost imagine the golden and blue eyes staring back at him in Watanuki's usual naivety, and he was sorely tempted to press a kiss on the closed eyelids. So instead, he let himself spoke, his low, monotoned voice barely a whisper, just enough between the two of them.

"I've almost lost you," He began, slightly trembling at the burden the words carried; "What happens if someday, I wouldn't be able to rescue you? What happens if I failed you one more time, gravely enough that you...die?"

Doumeki felt something cold come in contact with the hand he held Watanuki with, and for a second he considered pulling away- until he realized it was the spirit seer himself. The wounded boy's fingers were like butterflies grazing his skin, slightly hovering and not fully touching, as if hesitant to start such an intimate gesture. Doumeki could feel somewhat enlightened as his eyes met Watanuki's bi-colored own, and he couldn't help but let his mouth curve upward a bit- a shadow of a smile- as words he had long awaited for fell from the spirit seer's lips.

"You haven't failed me once, you idiot." He whispered, a hint of tears in his tone, and the usual venom lacking in the insult; "I trust you enough that you won't."

Doumeki was smiling now (it was small, but knowing Doumeki, it was full enough), and his thumb wiped away the tears that somehow had formed in Watanuki's eyes, leaning down to breathe on his companion's mouth. "Then I won't," He said, with a renewed confidence, life sparking back in his golden orbs; "I promise you, I won't. Ever."

The shadows grew longer beside them, dancing in the cold winds; and yet, the only warmth he really needed was the warmth that seeped from Watanuki's lips- the same warmth that pressed gingerly upon his own.

-

Haris made her way towards her home quickly, her steps firm and fast over the pavement, fully ignoring the spirits that littered the streets that night. The lights had long gone, and the only illumination she had for the way was the moon's, and even if it was quite hard to make out figures and houses in the darkness, she went on just as quickly, knowing full well that she would be safe once she entered her home.

Which was true; Iris had the uncanny gift to repel spirits, though it wasn't as strong as Doumeki's- she knows that much that he had the ability to do so- and it was enough to keep such entities at bay. They had some wards on the walls too in case Iris was too weak to help- and Vinx fought them back, since he cared a lot for the twins, especially Iris. All Haris could do was detect them- even Iris could do that- but even if she did not have the power to ward them away, she had the guts to stand her ground anyway.

She closed the door behind her as she made her way towards the kitchen, where her sister and Vinx were probably gathered, and nodded her greetings as she did reach them- pulling out a chair to sit on, her face bathed in the orange glow of the single candle in the room.

"How are they?" Iris began her voice soft and weak- Haris suspected she had been crying. "Are they alright?"

"Watanuki is being taken care of, don't worry." Was the twin's reply, but it was too late to say 'don't worry', since she could clearly see Iris fidget in her seat; "The spiderlings weren't able to take Watanuki, so he's fine. Really."

"And Doh...meh...key?" Vinx asked this time, squinting just a bit to remember how Doumeki's name sounded, and how to say it in human tongue. "Is he...fine?"

Haris smiled at the monster, nodding. "The poison was treated, he's fine."

Iris placed a hand on her left breast, sighing happily. "Thank god they're safe."

Himawari's not, Haris thought, fingering her already unruly hair. But she's coming back.

"The spiders are far worse than being big," she stated slowly; "They possess people. And once they do, they'll use the host to collect human blood, as well as draining the victim's soul. That's what I've learned so far, though, and I'm not quite sure how to deal with it."

Her younger twin had her hand over her mouth, eyes scrunched up in disgust. "That's revolting, Haris. Where did you learn something like that?"

The stoic teen did not reply; instead she said: "Himawari's coming back."

There was silence. In the dim light, Vinx shifted uncomfortably. They all knew what Kunogi's return meant.

"But she's not Himawari," said Iris after a while, in her usual innocence, and Haris turns her gaze towards the window, watching the rain.

"It's not over yet." She whispered, to no one in particular.

-

A/N: Gaah. I need to get a life. Period. xP It took me some time to write this because one: The New year was coming and I had to jump to in order to get tall at exactly midnight, and two: I had to make this backdrop for one of our upcoming school plays. So I didn't have much time. Oh well. Here it is then. OwO Reviews please, don't forget.:D

Wata: Why the hell should I be paired with him? DX

Dou: Quit complaining.

Wata: You're just saying that because I cook for you every after rehearsal! D

Dou: What else should we do then?

Wata: …


	5. Late

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: dou/wata (it was slight earlier. Oh well). No hima/wata though, please don't be fooled by what will take place. Amen. The usual cast and my OC characters; more characters AND more elaborative pairings once the story progresses. Hopefully.

Rating: T for now (because there will be blood and yaoi. Haha.)

Disclaimer: xxxHolic not mine. But I do own something, amen.

-

**Late**

-

_Foolish people who don't look back _

_Tend to lose their noble way; _

_Victims of countless surprise attacks_

_With to blood signify the end of day_

-

It wasn't new to Tsukomi-sensei to see a certain student, particularly Watanuki Kimihiro, to be wrapped up in bandages. The said boy was always known to be a trouble-maker; Watanuki enjoyed waging numerous wars against the Archery club's star (some popular guy named Doumeki Shizuka), and was always running around as if he was being chased. Watanuki was a good student; though he wasn't really the top of his class, he maintained satisfactory grades, properly behaved (most of the times), and was never one to speak out of hand. Watanuki wasn't friendless either; he was immediately friends with Iris Manson, the recent newbie, and Himawari was happy with him. Even Doumeki himself was always beside the bespectacled boy, despite the protests.

Watanuki, though, was sometimes out of shape. Or most of the times. These days, it wasn't surprising to see his seat empty and skin patched; Tsukomi wondered if it was the possibility of DV (or domestic violence), but then Watanuki was an orphan and lived alone, so that in itself was highly unlikely.

Like usual, Watanuki was spacing out, staring blankly at the window beside him. He was absently fingering the bandage that almost wrapped the whole of his arm, long fingers slightly tracing the fabric. Sometimes, a sigh or two would issue from his mouth- and his cheeks would redden a bit, his palm automatically coming into contact with his lips. Tsukomi was about to call for the said student's attention when suddenly, the door opened, and in came Himawari Kunogi-chan.

Kunogi was a student who smiled often- that was one of her well-known traits. But she wasn't smiling at all once she entered, just proceeding to her seat unceremoniously. Tsukomi watched with mild interest as Watanuki was broken from his stupor to gape at the said girl, but any amount of his staring didn't earn him anything as much as a glance, and after a while, reclined to a worried crease in his brow. After a while though, whenever Watanuki did something (like report to the board or whatever), it's Kunogi who's staring, and the said action has caused Watanuki to fidget a bit. Tsukomi himself was quite surprised at the emotion Himawari held when she did look at Kimihiro; it wasn't rage, and it wasn't desperation either. It was that of a hungry look- the kind of look a predator had when eyeing a prey.

-

"Are you feeling well, Himawari-chan?"

Watanuki was standing before the said girl as he asked this, with his head tilted to the side and his hands looking fidgety. As expected, Himawari didn't bat an eyelash at his statement, only staring at her blank table with an equally blank look. Watanuki considered touching her- and yet afraid to do so- and was about to leave when he decided, well, maybe it'd have her notice him. And so he did touch her. He laid his hands on the upper part of her arms, gently shaking her, leaning down with the same question on his lips.

"Are you feeling well, Himawari-chan?"

Her reaction wasn't immediate, but she did look up at him before he retracted himself. Her eyes did not hold the same delight they had whenever she usually met Watanuki's bi-colored ones, with hers a deeper shade of green, but having lost its spark only caused it to darken more. Her lips did not move to reply even, but they did curl up- and she smiled at him, but it hadn't caused him to flutter and spaz about; quite contrary, it left him immobile, even as she eased out of his grip, even as she left the room.

There was a hand on his shoulder, and he shakes his head as he turns to the owner of the hand. It was Iris, looking worried, and as the bell rang she only stated the obvious; "There's something terribly wrong with Himawari-chan."

Watanuki nodded gravely before gesturing to leave for lunch.

-

If Doumeki could have been more vocal and honest, he would have said that he missed Watanuki's flailing and screaming.

Such movements clearly stated "I'M WATANUKI KIMIHIRO" at anybody's face, and Doumeki always found it amusing that even the littlest teasing from the archer would cause the spirit seer to enter a full range tirade about, well, anything in particular. And yet, with all the things that had happened, Watanuki had grown much sober- and Doumeki knew that if he did start to jibe, Watanuki would see him as someone completely inconsiderate- which was most likely since he was the kind of person who'd wait in the rain with a ribbon in hand for hours- and with the danger the current situation held for Watanuki, he thought it best not to aggravate the already befuddled spirit seer any longer.

"You forgot the soy sauce." He stated blankly, as Watanuki handed him over his bento to eat. The bespectacled boy only frowned as he opened his own bento, looking down at the food he had taken so much time to prepare. The intricately-made sukiyaki was arranged at the upper right, forming a slightly triangular form, before meeting up with the rainbow-colored tamagoyaki and eggrolls, slices of carrots and lettuce lining the inside of the bento, herding the lot with a square container that contained mayonnaise, and another of soy sauce. Watanuki saw all of this, and frowned.

"I most certainly did not forget the soy sauce, you moron." He said, but the emotion was gone, and Doumeki only huffed in response.

It felt so awkward with just the two of them, eating by the stairs that led to the classrooms, with the twins having to deal with something in the teacher's lounge and Himawari being somewhere else at the moment. Doumeki had long noticed the girl's absence, so in an attempt to have Watanuki say something, to try a conversation, maybe, he decided it best to ask about it.

"Where's Kunogi?"

Watanuki flinched at the mention of the girl's first name, entirely pissed that Doumeki had said so without using any suffix, and entirely reluctant to speak anything of her.

"Er," he began, poking at his meal; "She's eating somewhere else, it seems."

Doumeki raised his eyebrows at him as he continued to chew down the food he had without as much as batting an eye. "Ah."

"DON'Y YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE TO SAY?" Watanuki half-flailed, wanting to hit Doumeki, to hit anything, at the sudden burst of exasperation raging in his veins. He wasn't really mad at anyone, but with all the tension he held, it did him good to vent out.

Doumeki caught hold of his right wrist as he did flail, and the gesture quieted the spirit seer down, who was staring at him with a surprised look on his blushing cheeks. Despite the sign of discomfort, he did not pull away, and Doumeki thought it best to lean forward and capture the slightly parted lips, and so he did.

Memories of the previous night flashed blindingly in Watanuki's mind, and as a sign of surrender he whimpered, slowly pressing his thin frame against Doumeki's firm own, unmindful of the bentos that luckily landed squarely on the bottom step, spilling nothing. He felt Doumeki's warm hand press upon his cheek, felt the archer's thick strands of hair in his fingers, and was about to give in to the playful nudge of tongue when he realized, oh hey, we're in public.

He pulled away almost reluctantly, his face flushed, and even Doumeki seemed uncertain of what to do. But the archer always recovered first- and so, as he did, he said; "I want you to watch your back, alright?"

The warning bell then rang, and Doumeki proceeded to help tidy up the bentos, frowning at the leftovers that weren't supposed to exist in his.

"I would like some sushi rolls tomorrow." He stated as he left, Watanuki ranting behind his back, and he could feel himself smile at the familiarity of it all.

-

"Mou, Watanuki-kun," Said Iris, as the two sat on their tables facing each other; it was two periods before the much-awaited dismissal, and it was also one of those rare periods wherein the teacher called in sick. Iris was swaying her legs as she smiled at Watanuki, who still looked a bit flustered about whatever happened during lunch. "You look a whole lot chipper!"

Watanuki smiled a bit, placing his fingers on his lips. "Well, I had a decent meal." He said, then figured that he was being obvious enough, and so changed the topic; "W-where's Himawari-chan?"

He didn't know how many more times he was going to ask people that. It was starting to grow tiresome. But with the way Himawari was acting, and since she was his friend, he couldn't help but feel really worried about her.

"She left for the infirmary while you were asleep in class," She replied, tilting her head a bit to the side in an adorable fashion, crossing her legs in the process. "She said she had a headache or something. You're never really sure."

"Maybe I should go visit," he said as he got down from his table. "Would you like to come with me?"

Iris brought her hands to her mouth, her brows creasing in disappointment. "Ah, I was going to watch Haris play soccer," she declined, referring to her twin who was part of the group taking PE lessons right then; "I'm sorry, Watanuki-kun."

Watanuki raised a hand to pat Iris' shoulder. "That's alright, I'll see you then."

Iris waved at him as he made his way to the door. "Take care, Watanuki-kun! Please send Himawari-chan my regards."

And so, Watanuki walked past the numerous corridors and descended stairs; the infirmary was located in the first floor, near the lobby, so that it would be easy for patients to be picked up by their parents when sent home. Watanuki had never been sent home with his parents, of course, but he was familiar with the infirmary's white walls and intoxicating smell; in fact, it wasn't surprising for him to be in a place like it.

He pushed open the infirmary door and greeted the nurse a cheerful hello, and the woman greeted back. They had nurses in the infirmary, not doctors, since it was rare for someone to be sent with a lethal wound or whatsoever. "Is Himawari kunogi-chan here?" He asked as the nurse invited him to sit in front of him, probably thinking he was a patient.

"Ah, Kunogi-chan? She's restless, but she doesn't look well. She left for the roof top, I think, she wanted some air." The nurse smiled faintly as Watanuki was about to react. "Don't worry, I sent someone to accompany her. Why don't you see for yourself?"

Watanuki thanked, bowed at, and smiled at the nurse before he left the room, hurriedly bounding up the stairs. He doubted that whoever the nurse sent to accompany Himawari would do a good job- what with Himawari's condition and state of mind. The man wasn't even aware of anything that was happening! What if he would get dragged into the mess Watanuki and his friends were stuck in?

When he arrived at the roof top, there were exactly two things his mind took note of.

One: The nurse sent a girl, and that's not really a good thing.

Two: The said girl was busy buying drinks in the vendor machine, her back at Himawari, who was clutching at the rails as if she wanted to jump.

Watanuki ran towards his possessed friend, gently holding her arms before she could plan to hit him or anything. "Himawari-chan," he said a bit sweetly, only to imply that he wasn't meaning any harm. "Let's go back to the infirmary, okay?"

He suddenly felt Himawari quiver in his touch, leaning forward to obscure her face from his view. She started to hiccup, badly, and Watanuki realized that she was...crying. Oh god, Himawari was crying.

"I...I'm scared..." she said between sobs, and guilt twisted the spirit seer's gut; "Sometimes I know what's happening, but I feel so weak when I do, and then there are times when I do things I don't want to do, things that I shouldn't do, but I'm no longer in control-" she made a movement to pull away, but Watanuki held fast- Himawari shouldn't leave his touch, because if she did, she might lose herself again. That was his theory anyway.

"Watanuki-kun..." she sobbed once more; "Help me, please! I'm really sorry, and I'm really scared. Please help me..."

"What can I do?" he inquired, mentally kicking himself for the slight quiver in his voice. He felt Himawari make a move to face him, so he allowed her, and his bi-colored eyes were met by the familiar green orbs of the girl, though this time they were filled with tears. Himawari clasped her hands above her chest, leaning forward till their noses touched, and from her lips came a whisper only he could hear; "Please kiss me."

Watanuki's heart skipped a beat. A red color had somewhat sipped into his cheeks, and he realized with faint horror that he was blushing. This wasn't his first, obviously, so why was he blushing?

It was Himawari he was going to kiss. Someone he had once fussed and purred over, but that was before Doumeki, and he wasn't even sure of what he felt for the archer. Now, facing Himawari like this, talking to her likes this, it felt entirely new and- he was scared too.

But Himawari looked too distraught to decline, and so he nodded bravely before leaning down to seal her lips with a kiss.

There wasn't anything special about the kiss. There were no butterflies and birds twittering in the distance, no scenic sunset with the sand and the sea; all he could feel was the slightly prickly feeling of something entering his lips as Himawari moved her head to the side to get better access to his mouth- it was something that moved into his mouth, onto his tongue, and Watanuki was about to freak out when he felt Himawari's own tongue trailing his teeth, and though he wasn't really responding and into it, he didn't push her away. He had his hands firm at his sides, eyes open, whereas Himawari had thrown her arms around his neck and was kissing him with her eyes closed, like there wasn't tomorrow.

But whatever it was that entered his mouth was closely followed by two more or so, and about that time when he heard the distant bang of a door being shut closed, and he saw Haris moving towards them from the corner of his eye; before he knew it, he was pushed away, and he looked around, dazed, and saw Himawari slip to the floor. There was still something moving in his mouth, he was sure, and he opened it to put a finger inside- when he felt someone else's finger (fingers, in fact) enter his mouth instead and roved inside like the person was trying to grab something. But the thing had long gone, and Watanuki could feel it sliding down his throat, making him sputter and gag at the hand inside his mouth.

He heard Haris swear before he felt he was pushed down to the floor, and a slim female body sat on his abdomen, expert hands trailing his throat before pushing sharply at his collarbone. Watanuki gasped at this, wondering why in the world Haris was doing something that slightly resembled harassment to him, and why everything had started to make less sense, and who was that person entering the door now?

"Watanuki!"

Doumeki. He was too familiar with the archer's voice, he thought, as Haris was brought away from him, and he sat up, violently coughing as he did.

Haris was too fussed and angry to explain everything, so she turned on her heel to leave the three, with Doumeki leaning over Watanuki and Himawari lying unconsciously in the distance.

Meanwhile, there seemed to be an unexplainable pain that surged through his lungs, and he couldn't breathe at all, so he resolved to coughing fits. He was coughing so bad that he wouldn't be surprised to see blood from his mouth. He curled up as the spasms continued to rack through his body, with his hand clutching painfully at Doumeki's shirt, and he was thankful for the support the archer supplied him. But everything changed as the coughs ceased; his body started to move all on its own.

And so, he could only watch as Doumeki stared at him with wide eyes as he smiled uncharacteristically sweetly at the archer, from whom he wriggled away from all too soon. His legs weren't wobbly as he had thought it would be, and though he would have wanted to thank Doumeki, to at least say something before he left, his body moved on his own, and he was forced- somewhat- to leave the last safe place in the world.

-

A/N: OH YEAH I'VE REACHED CHAPTER FIVE. There is hope. (is happy) Thanks to the people who had faved or added this to their story alerts, and thanks soooo much to those who had bothered to review. People like you will go to heaven. xD

Now I really hate this chapter. v.v'

I really would appreciate to hear from you guys. Dx

See you all in chapter six! Cheerio! OwO


	6. Initiation

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: dou/wata (it was slight earlier. Oh well). AND OMG THERE'S A HARIS/DOUME DEVELOPMENT. *head explodes* The usual cast and my OC characters; I don't know if I'm planning to add any more characters, heck, these people are good enough. 8D

Rating: T for now (because there will be blood and yaoi. Haha.)

Disclaimer: xxxHolic not mine. But I do own something, amen.

-

**Initiation**

-

_Things like this rarely happen_

_And I don't want them to be _

_Will it continue, again and again? _

_Until our blind eyes can see? _

-

His head was buzzing with questions as he carefully attended to the unconscious Himawari, and the earlier events played on repeat in his mind. He was greatly shaken when he saw Haris treating Watanuki like that; much more was he when Watanuki had started to hack violently enough to cause him to tremble himself. But then, it frightened him to a certain point when Watanuki's coughs did cease, only to be replaced by an eerie smile. He didn't even bother to say anything.

Doumeki hauled Himawari to his arms, his mind wandering as he left the school building. He was planning to drop Himawari to a hospital, and phone her parents, before he would confront Haris in her home. What the girl had done was a tad too much, yes, but he couldn't blame her. Indeed, there was something wrong with Watanuki. But what was causing this?

"Oh, Kunogi!" Her mother sobbed as she hugged the said girl's sleeping figure on the hospital bed later on, with Doumeki being profusely thanked by the father.

"It's nothing," was all Doumeki said, and her father did not bother to ask what happened, just as she was alright. And so far, she was doing okay.

Doumeki left as soon as Kunogi's dad turned towards his daughter, his body on auto-pilot all the way. It was something he was used to be; he rarely had time to pay attention to everyday life, now that Watanuki was in obvious trouble, and now that something he had not felt for some time bubbled in his stomach.

It was anger. He was sure of it. He realized how much he disliked Haris Manson, especially the way she had always made it appear that things were under control; the way she would assess every situation with the same stoic facade as he did, but hers was more cold, more obscure; hated the way she hid her weaknesses, and the way she left people hanging with questions in their minds. Doumeki seriously thought she needed to develop some sort of social life.

But well. Haris had not experienced the things he did. Sure she was an exorcist with her sister and Vinx, but Haris had never felt the things he did right now, nor did she- and how she- could understand the nagging feeling of doubt and worry. He'd almost died for Watanuki plenty of times- he had given up his eye, his blood, and until now had been prepared to give up his own life just to see Watanuki's smile. And though Doumeki wasn't the type to judge other people, the theory of Haris not being human was imprinted in his mind, what with all the emotional lack she wore around her.

But Haris was a woman, a female; even she deserved love, one way or another. It was nice to know that she had her twin and pet to be with her; in fact, it was much better that way, since they controlled Haris- somewhat- to keep her from breaking through her human limits.

And perhaps the gods were mocking him, for as he arrived before the family shrine, he had before him a bloody and battered Haris Manson, just as beaten and helpless as he had wished her to be, plus the blood.

She had her baseball bat clutched in one hand, though it lacked its usual shine; there were teeth marks dented into the smooth wood, which in itself did not look like wood at all, being covered in dark crimson liquid. His golden eyes rose to take in the rest of her bruised and wounded arm, skipping over the long gashes without wincing, following the long scrapes on her slender neck, onto the indistinguishable Haris Manson. Her hair was messed up, spiky auburn standing unlike any other; her face was paler than usual with much emotion oddly visible, one of which he was partly glad to recognize as pain. What alarmed him the most, though, were her eyes.

Swimming within it were fear and longing, and he knew she's seen him. Oh gods, she looked pathetic- so much that he almost twitched to make a move to help her. A twitch.

As he made a move to reach his bow, his attention moved from the girl to the monsters that stood in a group before her. There was a whole pack of spirit wolves, with the pack leader- the largest- covered in blood, and a hungry look in its eyes. Doumeki held his gaze with it, each daring the other to back down, when he quickly whipped to fire his spirit arrows.

Haris had gotten to her feet by the time he released his arrow, and suddenly the wolves were everywhere. Amidst all the growls and attacks he had to dodge, he looked for the wounded girl- almost cursing her stubbornness- and he had to fire at another two wolves after kicking one away. There was a scream, a yelp, and then a loud thud- and Doumeki turned, wishing it was Haris who stood tall and triumphant from the impact, but that was hardly the reason.

The wolf stepped over her motionless body, limping slightly- and Doumeki could see that his friend had somewhat injured the pack leader, but at what cost? He could hardly believe that the boneless lump on the floor was the said girl. Panting a bit in effort, he fired one last arrow at the leader- and, with it being wounded enough, collapsed to the floor and disappeared into mist.

The rest of the wolves followed suit until what was left was a much disheveled Doumeki and a seemingly lifeless Haris.

Quickly, Doumeki gathered the girl in his arms before hurrying towards the family shrine. It was only yesterday had he dressed and had someone healed in the very room; Doumeki frowned at the fact that the person who had been here was in better terms with him, rather than the girl sleeping on an arranged futon. As earlier, Doumeki was still infuriated slightly with Haris, and though he wasn't the kind who'd pick on the weak or on anyone at all, he didn't feel as dedicated and as alarmed as he had with Watanuki. Besides, Haris was a strong girl, and Watanuki was...well, Watanuki.

When he finished dressing her arms and neck, he noticed the blood that stained her back, from the start of her nape towards her hips. Frowning, he eased her of her clothes- careful not to see anything else- and treated the gash too, which wasn't deep enough to be a fatal wound, but bad enough that it bled a lot.

Once he was done, Haris Manson was covered in bandages, even the whole of her torso (wherein Doumeki was looking nowhere else but forward as he wrapped it around her breasts). If anything else, she was also clothed in a simple spare yukata he had in his room. Beneath the bed spreads and blankets, though, none of such 'views' was to be seen- all there was to see was Haris' peaceful face in slumber, lips parted in her bliss.

Doumeki was, to be honest, surprised and in awe at the unfamiliarity of it all, with Haris being injured like that, and for her to look...this human.

He hated it.

Her eyelids fluttered open, meeting his gaze, and for a while he could see panic swim in her eyes, replaced by fatigue and what seemed to be pain. She raised an arm to cover her face, just so she could shield herself from him, cursing inwardly at something Doumeki was sure was her weakness.

And so he let her cover herself up in blankets, allowed her to squirm uncomfortably beneath, and to clench and tug at the futon. He even did so with his head turned away, but then she wasn't aware of that, probably. An awkward silence fell between them.

"What happened?" He asked first, breaking the enchantment.

Haris turned her head away, and he could hear a soft rustling of fabric; he approached her huddled form and saw that she had burrowed her face into the pillow. "I was looking for something to help Watanuki-kun with." she whispered, and since it was barely enough for him to hear, he had leaned over her as she said so.

Haris noticed the change of temperature and the presence of body heat. She stiffened at this, but Doumeki seemed unaware of his actions, too caught up with wanting to keep Watanuki from harm. "Did you find anything?" he breathed, dangerously close to his ear.

Haris made a movement to sit up, causing Doumeki to lean back. As she did, she slightly swayed before he grabbed her arms to hold her stable. As he had thought, Haris was still human.

He decided to repeat his question. "Did you find anything, Haris?"

She shook her head, but then suddenly everything brought pain, and she tumbled into his arms.

Doumeki was surprised at this, and he held her at an arm's length with good support and searching eyes. Something warm started to pool in his stomach, and he bit his lips and frowned even more as he realized that Haris was not to be treated this way in her situation.

He carefully lay her down on the futon again, and something stirred again as she moved her head, causing her auburn locks to spread on the pillow. Oh gods, it was blinding him, whatever it was. He kept his gaze on his female companion, his outer facade still an unreadable mask, though inside he was starting to go hysterical, at the emotions welling up inside him, at Haris, and at how crude everything was.

Haris opened her eyes again and stared up at the archer, her hazel orbs half-lidded in pain. She arched her back as another spammed through her body, and as she jerked she saw Doumeki stir away and repositioned himself directly above her, his two hands clutching at her wrists. She was panting when he did so, sweat and tears trailing her cheeks.

Doumeki frowned at her even more, pulling her up to him until she was leaning on his chest, and she thought he was going to pat her back and soothe the pain. But she knew he wasn't meaning any affectionate gesture. He trailed his fingers along the bandages adorning her back, causing her to moan again, and Doumeki clenched his teeth at that. What the hell was paining her so much anyway?

"There's a scar," he stated, something to get him out of the brink of insanity.

The pain surged again, and she bit his shoulder to stop herself from crying out. She could feel Doumeki stiffen and she knew he was greatly uncomfortable, but she was selfish, and she didn't really care if he was okay or not. Like this.

There had always been something fascinating about Doumeki Shizuka, and she had long wanted to know what it was, and how special it could be. Scratch the fact that they were strangely alike- she hadn't met anyone like her before, true, but now that she did she wasn't enjoying it that much- and though she hated the fact that he was a man and that he was obviously tougher than she was, and that he never moaned or cry this way in pain, well. She probably was a masochist after taking so much damage from her sister for so long.

"Don't move so much," she heard him whisper, and gently she was laid back again on the futon, but this time, her back did not hurt so much anymore.

Haris smiled at him rather lazily, her hands beside her head. "I'm still a woman, Doumeki." she said, making another attempt to sit up, where Doumeki kept her down by leaning over her and placing defiant hands on her thin arms. "I told you; don't move."

They stayed like that for a while, staring each other down, until finally Haris had looked away. The girl looked so different this way, and he wondered idly if this was a side Haris had rarely put out with somebody else, and if he was sort of special to actually witness it. Doumeki took note of the color that decorated her face, and the slight tremble in her voice as she spoke, and felt himself shudder at the mere unfamiliarity of it all; "I have a 'friend' in Florida who has...certain acids."

"Hn." he couldn't think of anything else to say, and just decided to fill the momentary gap.

"I was planning to visit tomorrow," she continued, and Doumeki's eyes widened, though that was the only thing she noticed. "Perhaps he has something that would do well for Watanuki."

"What's wrong with Watanuki?"

Her eyebrows met in a disturbed manner, with her eyes looking away, and her mouth set in a disapproving line. The way he immediately asked about the spirit seer only pissed her off, and though it was rare for her to show her emotions, she couldn't help but do so in front of Doumeki. And the fact that he was worrying about...well, it pissed her off. She had only met Doumeki after a few days, and until now she had struggled to keep herself from falling before him like this, but then the inevitable was a bitch; not only did she found herself actually accepting Doumeki into her confined heart, she even allowed herself to look so pathetic in front of him. What's not meant to be is not what's meant to be- period.

She had to get out of here.

Squirming, she moved her hands and shook her head, successfully being freed in the end. He let her go rather reluctantly, though, and as his fingers lingered over her wrists, she felt herself moan involuntarily.

"Sorry," he said quietly, pushing himself up and sitting at her side.

She wanted to mentally kick herself.

"I have to go," she was standing now, half-limping to gather her bearings, all the while ignoring his gaze. She picked the broken baseball bat up, frowning, before tossing it to the floor; "I have to prepare for tomorrow's flight."

She felt something warm and tight around her wrist once she made a move to turn towards the door, making her stop at a full halt.

"You shouldn't be traveling alone in your condition."

True. The ground still threatened to sway in her vision, and sometimes her limbs would hurt a bit, but not as much as the gashes hidden beneath the many bandages. She thought of all the similar scenarios wherein she had always needed to go away, but nobody had bothered to stop her completely- perhaps a fleeting look or two, and then nothing.

Oh, how she wanted to hit him.

"I'll be fine," it was the same thing she had told the others.

There was a rustle of fabric, and soft tugs at her arm. All the while, she kept from looking behind her, but she trembled slightly once the words she never thought of hearing entered her ears.

"Yuuko will take good care of Watanuki. I'm coming with you."

-

A/N: You know, I don't mind being chased by an angry mob. Maybe it'd prove fun even. xD Sorry about this really weird chapter. I was dying while I wrote it. And somehow, the plot bunnies are starting to disappear. NO! I can't let that be!!! Dx OMG MY READERS SAVE MEEEE *dies*

Anyway, Haris is acting like a total fangirl. (that's what I think) She's supposed to be this way, and blah blah, but NO, there will be nothing more than that. I want yaoi, you guys want yaoi. We're all happy. xD

And I'm really sorry it's short. DX I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS- I'M LOSING IT. Unless I really am, please say it isn't so. I want to drown in expensive wine now. xD

BUT THERE WILL BE A CHAPTER SEVEN. See you all soon, and thanks so much to those who had read and reviewed and faved and stood by The Alpha and the Omega till now. WE WILL MEET THE END, I SWEAR TO IT. AMEN. xD

On a side note: There are times when the poems are sucky. I know. I just need someone to rub it in my face.


	7. Hysteria

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: dou/wata; a one-sided dou/haris; the usual cast and my OC characters (I don't know if I'm planning to add any more characters, heck, these people are good enough. 8D);

Rating: T for now (should I raise it now? Oh well, the blood isn't that bad. xD)

Disclaimer: I only own what's mine; xxxHolic, sadly, is not one of them. And oh, those are the lyrics to the Muse's 'Hysteria' because I'm too lazy to come up with a poem. xD

-

**Hysteria **

-

It's holding me, morphing me

And forcing me to strive

To be endlessly cold within

And dreaming I'm alive

-

It's been a day since Doumeki had last dropped by with Watanuki behind him, telling her to watch over the said spirit seer while he was gone to find something important. As the sun finally set over the horizon, she brought the sake dish to her lips in deep thought.

Whenever she was supposed to take care or to watch over Watanuki Kimihiro, she would have kept on annoying him until he would scream his voice hoarse. Watanuki was predictable and extremely entertaining when angry, what with the cat-like flailing and endless string of words that sometimes meant nothing at all.

She was used to hearing endless of complains from her employee, especially when it came to food and alcohol. Sometimes he never complained, of course, he had his days- but such was only because he was sulking or he had given up reprimanding her. So now, as she sat lavishly upon her divan with sake in hand, she frowned at the silhouette of her employee who was once again heading to the kitchen with nothing more than a smile to bid her so.

The smile, in itself, was creepy. It wasn't his usual smile, the one that was glaringly Watanuki, complete with sparkles and twirls and other frilly stuff (the special effects were probably reserved for Himawari), or the one that was just...him. Watanuki had a nice smile, and she could clearly picture it in her mind even as the alcohol had started to get on her consciousness. Ah yes, Watanuki had a nice smile.

She raised her arm with sake in hand, and called upon Watanuki once more. He walked over to her and took the bottle, before disappearing again into the kitchen. She blinked in surprise at first, but her expression changed immediately to sulky. She didn't like the Watanuki before her.

Of course she was aware that Watanuki wasn't himself, and that there's something hiding within him. He's not possessed, but he might as well be, and she longed to hold his chin and reach into his throat and see for herself-

Her fingers close around the small disk in her hand, and she sighed somewhat exasperatedly as she sank further into the mass of pillows supporting her. There was nothing else she could do while Doumeki was away. All she could do was make sure he was safe and in her hands before Doumeki and Haris could return with an antidote to save him.

Yuuko had her hair all over the place in a very elegant manner, as she was always. Her clothes were scattered too- in such a way that it hinted a bit of daring thigh, or a supple cleavage line, but nothing more than that. Sometimes. Kimonos were common for her, with intricate designs lasting and different each and every time, often implying some hidden message to those who saw it. The one today was decorated with hydrangea blossoms and spider webs- and she gave out a knowing smile of her own towards Mokona, who smiled back.

It was her job to always know something whereas others do not. She was the dimensional witch- it came with the booze and lasting beauty, period.

The disk in her hand was small and empty, even as she brought it to her lips. She was almost going to call him again when her employee returned with the filled bottle of sake, and only giving her a slight nod after handing it over, which Yuuko frowned over once more. She had kept Watanuki by her side for numerous reasons- and besides that of affection, concern, duty and whatnot, there was whim. Watanuki was noisy and complacent; he flailed and ranted whenever he could, for it was one way of showing his concern over someone really stubborn and...well, someone who usually never really listened, or those who stepped onto his tail (and here Yuuko snickers to herself). With Watanuki so sober and creepy, things were just pissing her off.

"Watanuki, may I have a word with you?" she asked, raising her arm holding the sake dish; She was hardly in the mood for anymore silence and spazzed-less drinking, so she decided it'd be better if she'd at least try to change something.

It didn't work. Watanuki turned away and walked back ceremoniously into the kitchen without a word, and Yuuko longed to hurl a sake bottle at him. Even Mokona was staring with disbelief.

She lowered her hand onto her lap and was surprised when something long and furry slithered up her arm. Mugetsu made its way towards her cheek, nuzzling a bit, and Yuuko understood the message; "He doesn't want you on his shoulder, is it?" she asked softly.

The pipe fox nodded, resting its head on her shoulder, and she could almost hear it sigh.

Things were getting a little out of hand.

-

Watanuki wasn't sure what was controlling him or how, but his movements were all on its own, and whenever he tried for himself, his body wouldn't respond. It honestly panicked him a little, especially when he had to leave Doumeki on the rooftop, and even now with Yuuko...he inwardly frowned as he lay on the futon. At least whatever controlling him was thinking along the same lines as he was.

Oh, how he wanted to stretch his arms.

There was another voice in his head, presumably the one controlling him. It was low and scratchy, something that sounded like nails down a blackboard, and it actually hissed- like a snake or something else, he's never really sure. It rarely talked to him, rather it rarely talked at all, even if he would rant and flail noisily in his head- or whatever he was trying to achieve- the 'thing' would not even say a word about him.

At least it wasn't tiring. Watanuki could just float and watch his body do all the cleaning and the cooking, and wouldn't be affected by any of it. Though Yuuko's drinking was still getting to his nerves (it always did), at least he didn't have to sweat out to bring her more sake and snacks to go along with it. At least his body wasn't doing anything shameful or dangerous, and well. It couldn't get any better than that.

You have another thing coming, boy.

Watanuki was surprised to hear the thing's voice now that he had decided to rest (in the dark corners of his brain). He turned around, trying to catch a glimpse of the intruder's face, when suddenly there was a wave of pain coming from his body's left arm. Watanuki could always feel the pain, that much was true, so he decided it best to find out where the sensation came from, and why it hurt so much.

His body had somewhat gotten hold of a pair of nail clippers and was now using it to rake his arm.

"Stop it!" He screamed into the darkness as the pain continued to assault him. "Oh god, stop it! The blood...it's everywhere!"

You've not seen anything yet.

"Aah..." Watanuki's eyes blurred. "Stop..."

He was wholly back in his body again, where he could feel the full blow of pain, and he struggled to go back to the semi- unconsciousness to no avail. He was going to lose so much blood if this continued, and he could feel tears sliding down his cheeks now as his hand continued to mutilate his arm. He wasn't sure if he was screaming, but it felt like he was, and he couldn't even hear the door behind him open and the rushed footsteps inside.

And everything went dark.

-

It took Yuuko a moment or two to remember how to breathe.

She had burst into the room with a set face, throwing a damp towel laden with salt onto the arm Watanuki was using to injure himself with, which immediately tore an unpleasant scream from the spirit seer's throat before finally subsiding the dangerous activity. The nail clippers fell to the floor with a resounding thump, and Mokona quickly walked over to it to take it away. Yuuko closed her eyes against the blinding color of fresh blood, frowning deliberately at the smell of it. This wasn't exactly the first time she had seen Watanuki in such a state; with his being 'popular' in the other world, he was always bound to come up bloody and beaten on her footsteps.

But the sight before her right now somehow made her stomach churn- she opened her eyes with a steady breath to figure out how to fix him up- the layers of bloody skin was peeled back to reveal glistening red muscle tissues beneath, with the gashes uneven and somewhat scattered on his arm. The blood flowed freely from the open wounds onto the tatami mats on the floor, staining them- and drenching Watanuki's white pajamas with the same red color. The hand responsible for the crime lay at the side, also stained with blood. Yuuko averted her gaze and turned towards Watanuki's face, and closed her eyes at the angst building up inside her. She couldn't bear see his suffering tear-stained face.

With a slight nod at the worrying Maru and Moro, and of course the black manjuu, they set out to work to clean and dress the wounds.

-

The next day wasn't any better.

Watanuki, bandaged up and standing, didn't differ from how he was yesterday. He still met the Dimensional witch's orders of alcohol and food with the same blank look, as if nothing had happened last night. His left arm was a tad weaker, though, and a whole lot fragile-looking; Yuuko wondered if Watanuki was planning to harm it again, or any other part of him, for the matter.

But as he bent to pick up the empty beer bottles on the floor, Yuuko immediately held his thin wrist, causing the boy to look up. "Are you alright?" she asked.

Watanuki's lips twitched before curving up into a smile. Yuuko's grip slackened, surprised and unnerved, and the possessed spirit seer tugged his hand from her grip and was soon walking back into the kitchen.

Yuuko stared off after him, worry etched on her face.

"Watanuki is so scary!" The twins say in unison behind her.

-

Along with the beauty and the booze was the lot of rare artifacts to keep.

Yuuko knelt on the dusty floor of the storage room, a stack of tarot cards in hand. They weren't just ordinary tarot cards, of course (Yuuko had made sure of that), and as she shuffled the deck in her hands, she chanted under her breath. She then carefully laid a card after another into a circular form, all the while with Watanuki's full name on her lips, and when she finished, the atmosphere had turned darker.

She then opened each card that was positioned on the four points of the circle, respectively the north, east, west, and south, and carefully she bent down to read what the tarot cards had to say.

Destruction to one's self and to others.

Despair and endless troubles and doubts.

Delirium and the brink of insanity, filled with tension and uncertainty.

And lastly,

Death.

It wasn't a good stack at all.

-

Watanuki's skin was cold.

It was so cold. It was soft and somewhat unblemished, but rather than being quite warm to the fingers, it made her feel like she was touching the face that of a dead man. Or, less morbidly, a porcelain doll.

His eyes didn't differ from the comparison. They were dull and void, the usual brilliant shine that was certainly Watanuki drained out. They were glassy, and Yuuko could see herself reflected back at her and with all the similarities of her employee to a lifeless doll unnerving her, she pursed her lips and frowned at the additional immobility of the boy in her arms.

They were on the divan, with Watanuki lying on her lap, facing up. She had his face in her hand, with her eyes aligned with his chin, the same way his features were positioned with the way he was lying down. Her hair was sprinkled gently on his chest, forming a curtain to hide their close proximity.

There was no hidden malice, of course. Yuuko positioned them both this way not because she was planning to do something with a boy way out of her league, but because she was used to fleeting gestures and teasing glances- and the fact that she was very concerned with the boy.

It was not a difficult task either to get him on her lap. He was strangely obedient recently- and though that meant she could get things easily now, there was no joy or challenge at all. Watanuki had staggered a bit, but he did not protest, even if she had started peering into his face.

She was going to push back the hair that got into the boy's face when suddenly, he spoke.

"It's too late," he says in a low and threatening voice, very much unlike Watanuki's own.

Then he stood up and left through the front door.

Yuuko had never looked so helpless.

-

Iris was used to walking home at night. Though she wasn't as tough as her twin sister, she had the ability to repel the spirits that littered the streets. Sometimes she would need Vine with her, but the poor beast was hungry and was out hunting, so tonight she had to get home by herself.

It's been two days since Haris had left with Doumeki to Canada, and during the time Iris had been pretty lonely at home. She tried calling Himawari parents the other day, hoping to ask about her friend, but all Himawari father said was that they weren't sure if Himawari was going to be fine or not, but there were no fatal injuries at all, and she was still recovering. She had been delighted by this, of course, but she was still lonely. Even Watanuki seemed a little off recently, and he was staying with Yuuko at her shop, a shop she couldn't find.

Suddenly, a high-pitched scream echoed from further down the streets, causing Iris to jump a bit. She stared for a while towards the sound, hesitating, but after a while she took off towards the crime.

It was Watanuki.

In the darkness, all she could see was the boy's lean back, and the faint colors of something red on his sleeves. She approached him slowly, gingerly touching his shoulder as she reached him.

"Watanuki-"

A car passed; the light came in briefly, but at the short period she caught sight of the scene Watanuki was facing.

There was a body sprawled on the floor, bloody and mutilated, and the red liquid slithering down the walls and pooling before Watanuki's feet. There was a pair of garden shears in the spirit seer's other hand, all rusted and stained with the same liquid, but what scared her most was the expression on her friend's face.

He was smiling. Oh gods, Watanuki was smiling. He must've taken the shears from Yuuko's garden before committing murder, and oh, he was enjoying it.

He had started to turn and his bi-colored eyes met her own hazel orbs, and as he made a movement to hold her in place, she screamed before turning on her heel to escape. If Watanuki could enjoy something as bloody as this, how much more would he to a friend?

Watanuki, though, stayed where he was, still grinning. He didn't need to kill Iris yet. All he needed was a little nudge, a tip- off- something to attract Haris' and Doumeki's attention.

He leaned on the wall, bringing his bloody hand to his lips. The tip-off has been given. It's time to begin.

-

A/N: OMG IT'S OVER. Well, this chapter is. xD Sorry if there's no elaborative pairings here, I needed some space for the blood. Anyway, reviews and comments are welcome as always- I hope I've done Yuuko some justice. ._. I mean, I haven't properly written as her yet, amen. xD


	8. INTERMISSION: Once Upon a time in Canada

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: dou/wata; a one-sided dou/haris; the usual cast and my OC characters (I don't know if I'm planning to add any more characters, heck, these people are good enough. 8D);

Rating: T for now (should I raise it now? Oh well, the blood isn't that bad. xD)

Disclaimer: I only own what's mine; xxxHolic, sadly, is not one of them.

A/N: This is, obviously, just an intermission chapter. A little gift to a friend of mine named Michael, since he's a guy and he doesn't approve of yaoi, and since he like Haris so much, I wrote this for him. It only shows a bit of what happened during their trip. You know, I think it's better if you guys read this too since it explains what Haris had in mind about what to give to Watanuki to repel the spiders. A bit only. And it would explain some of the future occurrences in the next chapters. Haha. 8D Besides that, this intermission is really useless. Now excuse me while I beat the heck out of Michael since I'm doing him this much and he still refuses to review. XP

**-**

**Intermission: Once Upon a Time in Canada **

-

_Two people like us, we're obviously alike_

_And there's nothing wrong to feel something new_

_But there are people who exist who mean more than life_

_So soon I'll have to give up on you_

-

The whir of nearby planes was deafening, even as the two of them left the port to reclaim their bags. Haris knew where to go and what to do- he only had to follow silently behind her since she was used to things like this and well, this was probably his first time travelling to another country. He didn't even bother tell his parents the whole truth; all they know was that he had taken a three-day camp session for archery. It's a stupid excuse, of course, but his parents bought it. And so he was here.

The reason was entirely simple and urgent at the same time. Haris had an alchemist friend residing deep within the woodlands of Manitoba, somewhere far off north. She had contacted him some time after the incident on the rooftop- and was told that he had come up with a special acid made only to force the spiders within the person out so they could kill them when they did. It sounded gruesome, honestly, but between proper hygiene and Watanuki's safety, he couldn't care less.

So here they were. It was only to take exactly three days, landing at an airport nearby Winnipeg, renting a room in a small hotel, then leaving for Manitoba the next day. It really depended on how fast and efficient they were going to move as, and since Doumeki found it incredibly unnerving to leave an insane Watanuki with Yuuko, he was going to make sure they wouldn't be delayed.

Haris had brought only a sport sack filled with her necessities, but it was big enough to check in and heavy enough to consider doing so. As she made a move to haul it off the desk, Doumeki took the bag first and slung it over his shoulder. Haris looked at him blankly, and he returned his stare, as if daring her to do anything else.

The girl gave up. She knew there was no changing Doumeki's mind, and that he was probably right if he were to say that she was still weak due to her injuries. She made her way towards the exit to check out, and once both were done, they entered the busy afternoon streets.

Doumeki looked around, surveying the vast city before him. He was obviously out of place, and as he followed Haris towards the more crowded streets, he realized how certainly out of place he was. He did not enjoy that, but being with Watanuki had taught him one thing: just as there was no harm, it was alright being foreign to a place.

But still. The sea of faces looked at him sometimes, as if wondering why there was a Japanese tourist walking around in the rush hour or something. Haris didn't look her share of a citizen too, but due to her height and the fact that she wasn't looking around as if it was her first time; she didn't attract such attention from the onlookers.

Automatically, Doumeki reached out and grabbed Haris' wrist, causing her to turn around. He wasn't unnerved very much by all the staring but well; it wouldn't hurt to discuss some action plans in private.

"Let's get some coffee," he said, letting go of her wrist once she turned to him. "Before we board a bus to Winnipeg."

Haris tilted her head for a moment, and then shrugged. "Well, I am starving." She said with equal nonchalance, once more turning to the streets before her. "Let's look for a nearby cafe."

And so they did. The cafe they got in was slightly compact and hardly teeming with customers, but it was less crowded and more breathable inside, so Doumeki complied and agreed that this place would do. It was decent to say; the walls were a calming shade of mocha brown, decorated with what looked like little fleur-de-lis, and the floor was carpeted in a darker shade. The counter was not so long, just enough to cover a corner of the cafe', and there was only one man present, cleaning a white mug with a clean cloth.

Doumeki sat before Haris on a circular cushioned seat, leaning his elbows on the mocha-colored and dark brown-rimmed table that somehow complimented the shop's walls. The place smelled like bitter coffee, though it was somewhat sweet in turn. There was a distant ring of a bell, and there came a woman in a western maid outfit approaching them with a tray and a menu.

"What would you have for today, good sir and miss?" she said in a sweet voice, just as syrupy perhaps as the smell of sugar. Her accent was obviously British, and though it was slightly different and upturned and all that, Doumeki understood.

"We'll have two tuna sandwiches," he started, and Haris looked at him in awe at the fact he could speak somewhat straight English; "And a cup of Cappuccino for my friend and some Latte, please."

The waitress wrote all of it down before flashing them with a smile, more direct at Doumeki, anyway. When she left, Haris leaned over to talk to her companion in a hushed manner; "I can't believe you did that."

"Believe what?" Doumeki asked, his language switching back to Japanese. "I can speak English too, you know."

"Well," Haris huffed; "Well, knowing you."

Did she have anything else to say?

The drinks came first. Doumeki watched as Haris' fingers closed tenderly around the cup, gently bringing it to her lips with the other hand supporting the bottom. There was a slight tremor in her form as the liquid touched her lips, and Doumeki feared that in surprise she might drop the mug.

But she didn't. In fact, she replaced the cup back on the disk, licking her lips. "Just the way I like it," she said, somewhat contentedly. Doumeki raised his eyebrows, raising his own cup and downing half of the lot with a single swig. "Ah," he commented as he placed his cup down.

The sandwiches arrive last, and as the waitress walked away (after winking at Doumeki) the two poked and prodded at the meal before deciding to pick it up or to cut it apart with a knife.

"Hn." Doumeki started, breaking the silence that had enveloped them. "Not bad."

Haris stifled a laugh behind a bandaged hand, attracting Doumeki's eyes. "What's so funny?" He asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Well, you haven't tried anything else yet." She replied, plopping another bite into her mouth. "This is decent enough. Shall we get going?"

Doumeki looked sadly at the half-eaten sandwich on his plate; though it was good, it didn't fully satisfy his taste buds, since he longed for something else- obviously someone else's cooking- and somehow he had lost his appetite.

"Alright." He said, downing the Latte quickly, before standing to leave. Haris left enough money to pay for the two of them before following Doumeki out the door.

-

It was a nice and comfortable room to live in.

It had nice furniture and plump beds; the floor was carpeted and well-maintained, and the heater was warm and comfortable. Doumeki left his bags in a far corner near the bed he was planning to use, dropping Haris' own next to his. The said girl had immediately headed to the shower, and he frowned as the distant pitter-patter of water echoed from within the bathroom walls.

Well, he wasn't really sure what he wanted to achieve when he had offered to accompany the girl to such a weird and unfamiliar place, far away from someone he cared for so much. In fact, now that he was lying down on one of the beds, he realized how stupid his decision was, sacrificing something so unnecessary to someone who could obviously take care of herself. She was hurt, yes, but she wasn't in trouble any more than that.

Whereas Watanuki...ah, he was probably under the watchful eyes of the Dimensional witch. But sometimes Yuuko refused to do anything that was not of hitsuzen's will, ending such lingering conversations with her usual statement, "It is inevitable,". How he hated to hear those words especially if it would harm Watanuki. There were some things, he believed, that could bend hitsuzen's accursed will- and he was one of them.

Or so he believed. In all honesty, ever since that encounter with the giant tarantula, all self-confidence had dwindled within him. And though the fact that Watanuki had handled him so well the night after- Doumeki could still remember the brushing of skin and the caress of lips- they were farther apart now, and without seeing the spirit seer with the knowledge that the said boy was in trouble, well, it lessened his vigor. Not that he had any to begin with.

What troubled him the most, though, was the straight fact that Haris was with him, and how awkward it was to be with her. Ever since that night when he had saved her, a good 32 hours ago (well, accurately, he thought), her attitude towards him had changed. She was more open, to begin with, more vulnerable, as if she believed that he was the one who could actually save her at some point (like that night when the spirit wolves attacked). Because of that, she only unnerved him more, even more than when they had first met when Watanuki was in danger- oh, how he had dared to fire an arrow at the pet beast behind her. Of course she had not said anything, being cool and all at that time, but he could feel the accusations in her eyes when she had looked at him, a little later when Watanuki was in his arms.

If Haris was scary before, she was even more frightening now.

There was a sound coming from the bathroom, then a loud thud. Doumeki waited for a moment or two, lying on his stomach, before he got up and knocked hesitantly at the bathroom door.

"Haris?" He called; "Haris, are you alright?"

There was a soft sound, a tightening of the water tap; the door opened, and Haris stood before him, still dripping and fresh from the shower with a towel on.

She had her head bowed. "It's nothing," she said, before padding over to her bed, where a set of clothes was laid for her. Doumeki turned away, towards the door, bending to pick up a book from his bag as he went. He could feel her eyes on him as he left.

He stood in the corridor for a while, staring onwards. He raised an arm to swipe back his hair when he noticed the book he had randomly taken with him- an English book, so to say, of old English fairytales. Curious as to why he had something of such in his bag, he started to skim through its narrow content.

The fairytales, as expected, were shallow. Shallow and unrealistic. Doumeki found himself frowning a little more as he continued to read the short stories of so-called tragic love and the misplaced belief in magic and true feelings in a couple. His eyebrows met in a firm line as he quickly finished the thin book, and as he did, he leaned back on the door behind him. If only it was as easy as the fairytales say, but then again, they did not include gigantic spiders that possess humans; they didn't concern their silly princes with frightful dilemmas that concerned other people, people who were victims of such supernatural enemies; they didn't speak of having to leave a loved one without so much as telling that person that you loved him, that you actually cared, and that you would return, soon, to save him from his misery.

Fairytales had nothing of that, and it angered him to a full extent.

But still. Still.

Fairytales taught people- children, mostly- that hope existed, and that love did prevail. Scratch the last one though, since it sounded childish and wimpy and Doumeki was none of that- but hope was indeed evident, yes? All he had to do was to endure the whole time without Watanuki, and pray to god he was alright, and soon things would be back to normal. Of course, it would be a lot harder if he hadn't met Haris- even if things started to prove awkward between the two of them, she did matter, and he was thankful to have her help.

The said girl broke him from his thoughts, with a simple opening of the door- causing him to stumble backward a bit, but hey, that was alright- and a look that clearly stated that he could come in now. He followed silently, tossing the book back onto his bag, before lying on his bed. Haris watched him with an expressionless face, and as he relaxed she took her place on the other bunk beside his.

"I'm going to sleep for a while," she declared, and Doumeki sufficed with an audible grunt as his answer.

Minutes passed, and soon Doumeki woke to notice that he had drifted off slowly to sleep. Clutching his head, he glanced at the sleeping figure of Haris, and realized that she wouldn't wake either for about a few more hours- she was still injured, after all, besides being tired after their journey. Thinking that maybe he wasn't going to get any sleep for the next few days, and that they might leave early tomorrow morning for Manitoba (an obviously isolated place where Haris' so-called friend resided), Doumeki let himself sleep.

And he dreamt.

The dream was brief; he had only opened his eyes when the colors and sounds came crashing onto him without cease, and the moment he thought he was going to drown then and there, he opened his eyes to see nothing at all.

Well, except the blood.

It dripped on steadily, even if it was staunched by a thick wrap of bandages. He recognized the injured part to be a hand, but at the same time, he knew it wasn't an injury at all. The red liquid came from it, yes, and as it continued to drip in an almost tantalizing way, he knew it was only covered by it, and that was that.

The dream wasn't really horrifying until he came.

The boy he always had in his dreams, to be precise. Though normally it was a happy and usual thing, seeing Watanuki as a disheveled and insane-looking boy wasn't part of his 'good dreams' list. At first, Watanuki had his back to him, and he could see the blood dripping from the spirit seer's hands- the very same hands he had seen earlier- and the shadow of the boy's malicious smile.

He had raised his hands in fear, perhaps, that the boy might turn on him and stab him dead with the shears in his hand, but as he did his fingers came into contact with the red liquid and Watanuki's soft cheeks, and then there was the boy before him with a helpless look on his face, and the blood was everywhere and he couldn't breathe in anything else...

He awoke, drenched in sweat. His hands were tangled in the bed sheets around him, and he realized that Watanuki's name was on his lips. He brought his hands to his face, an attempt to still the trembling, an attempt to block away the dream.

There was a slight movement somewhere to his side, a soft rustling of fabric and a moan. Doumeki turned his gaze towards the sound, his eyes meeting Haris face, and saw that she was struggling- perhaps like he had just earlier- in her own sheets.

She moaned once more as he stood to approach her. She was half-flailing on the bed, her limbs pushing the blankets and pillows around. He stood by her bed, just staring and drawing no particular emotion from how she was, until at least she started murmuring in her sleep.

Her hands slightly brushed his, and as he made a movement to pull it away, her fingers closed around his palm and she pulled it to her face. It was only then he realized she was crying. He knew best not to jerk away from her, but he hated the way her soft skin came into contact with his hand, no matter how involuntary.

"Mother," she said quietly, entangling her fingers with his hand, hugging it to her cheek. "Oh mother. I'm glad you're here. I was having a bad dream."

Now he really wanted to pull away.

After quite some time, as he had started easing away from her grip, did she notice that it wasn't a female's hand she was holding- and slowly, as she opened her eyes, her own hazel ones met his penetrating orbs.

He wanted to say "I'm sorry" in a way, but as soon as her arms wrapped around his neck and his body was pulled down gently towards her, he decided it best to say nothing at all and try to break away from her grip. He leaned back, half-kneeling on the bed, just staring. She had narrowed her eyes at him, frowning a bit, with a small blush on her cheeks. Well, it was pretty hard to be blown off like that.

But at the next moment, she had recovered; she was suddenly all over the place, holding his face and then clutching at his arms, and he could feel her lips crush none-to-gently on his, and as he struggled to hold her down or something, he was pushed onto his back.

It wasn't a desirable place to be: for one, it made Haris seem to be dominating (and he didn't like the idea that she was a girl and this could mean an entirely naughty thing), and two, well, he couldn't fully fight her this way. But all he had to was to keep from responding to her touches- unless of course, she started touching his privates. He would react in violent way.

His jaw clenched as her lips started trailing his neck downwards, and oh how he wanted to do it himself, or at least to get off his back. But Haris was no one else, period, no matter how much he squinted at her slender form hovering over him- even if Watanuki was thinner than her, or just the same, it wouldn't help at all.

So he took her shoulders once she reached his collarbone; he took them in his hands and gently pushed her away. Her face was flushed from embarrassment and rage and something else, but he gave no notice of that, and left the bed once she was kneeling before him.

He stopped once he felt her grab his wrist, and he turned his gaze to see. She was slightly pouting, still flushed. He had his one leg touching the carpeted floor already, and without a second thought, he moved to get off completely.

"Doumeki, please," he heard her beg, and it caught his attention. Completely. For Haris Manson did not beg. "Stay."

He was used to leaving numerous fan girls with the same words, and was about to do the same, when her hands went to his shoulders as it left his wrists- oh gods, what was she implying?

His lips met hers again, but with a sign of resignation, Doumeki allowed himself to be pulled back towards the bed. She wasn't going to stop, and he wasn't in the mood to fight about it all night long. Give her what she wanted. If it was sex, though, he had to let up. He didn't want to do it with anybody else but...well.

Well.

-

Does reality have happy endings?

He could not say.

He was reading the book of fairytales again as Haris moved around the room. It was already six in the morning- the bus for Manitoba would soon arrive, and since Doumeki didn't feel like leaving the hotel room, he let Haris take charge of her own safety. For today.

Or maybe it was because he felt somewhat upset about what happened the other night. He didn't even want to talk about it. Fortunately, she found it unnecessary too. So, like the rest of the damp blankets and pillows littering the floor, the subject was dismissed, and they rarely spoke to each other. Perhaps Haris was annoyed too, but somehow he couldn't bring himself to care at all. What happened had happened, period. No words could ever undo its occurrence.

He propped himself up with his elbows, straightening a fold on the page he was reading. Somewhere behind him, Haris wore her shoes, and was already at the door.

"Will you take long?" He asked; he had to, in a way.

"No." She replied; "You can stay if you want."

He fingered the spine of the book. "Just tell me if you need help."

She had to go. The bus was arriving any second, and she hated to be delayed.

"I'll contact you. One way or another."

And with that, she was gone.

He sighed briefly, tossing the book in his hands towards the pile of blankets near the door.

If this was a fairytale, then that certainly is not what you call a happy ending.

-

A/N: Bang. Intermission chapter done. 8D NOW LET'S MOVE ON TO CHAPTER EIGHT!

A little patience though, guys. I can't seem to be OL often, and with the power blinks, it's difficult to write. DX BUT THERE WILL BE AN UPDATE, I SWEAR. Reviews are always welcome, and please flame Michael. Gaha, just kidding. Thanks to all who review, and as long as it's signed, I shall reply to them. 8D I always do. Haha!

p.s.

I find it funny that the intermission chapter is longer than the usual. Oh well.


	9. Rain

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: dou/wata; a one-sided dou/haris; the usual cast and my OC characters (I don't know if I'm planning to add any more characters, heck, these people are good enough. 8D);

Rating: T for now (should I raise it now? Oh well, the blood isn't that bad. xD)

Disclaimer: I only own what's mine; xxxHolic, sadly, is not one of them.

**-**

**Rain**

-

_Bloody skies will soar and stay that way _

_So sunrise, will you wash away the rain?_

_The crows will cry and time will drain the day_

_And so the sunset shall bring forth the pain_

-

It was cold.

Or at least, she felt that way. No matter how much she pulled her jacket around herself, the icy feeling would still sink in, and almost often she found herself shivering involuntarily even in the thick sweater. As she made her way down the stairs leading out of the plane, she could feel the bottle of phosphorous liquor in her pocket. The said liquid was entirely poisonous, yes, but the alcoholic properties mixed with the deadly element nullified its effects, so if a human being drank it, only the essence within that person would be killed, and not the person himself. She brought a hand towards where the bottle bulged in her jeans and gave it a brief pat; this would surely save Watanuki from the spiders within him.

Haris dared herself to look back at her companion who, all the way, had kept silent. He was tall and well-built, slightly tan in color. His expressionless eyes were an unusual shade of yellow, somewhat gold, always half-lidded and unfazed by almost everything that went on. He had in his veins the ability of repelling spirits, something she thought only she could do before, and he made up for the lack of seeing such supernatural entities with his excellent skills in archery. He had a heart of gold, always prepared to put his life on the line for others, but despite this, she couldn't help but hate him. After all, he was someone even she couldn't decipher, couldn't reach; someone she couldn't keep for herself.

She had never felt so selfish in her life.

"Haris," she heard him say, and since she had her head back and her eyes on him, she lowered her gaze; "Hm?"

Doumeki raised his right arm and pointed at the figure of a girl approaching them. "It's Iris."

Indeed. Iris' had a slightly morose get-up today; usually she would have tied her hair back into two firm tails, but now she had them down, and the only ornament she had on her head was a plain violet headband. She wore a lose yellow jacket over a violet tee and above-the-knee shorts, but even such showed how less cheery the girl was feeling. Of course, only Haris would know.

"Haris! Doumeki-kun!" The girl waved at them, even as they slowly approached her. "Aoh, I've missed you guys, especially you, sister!"

"Likewise, Iris." Haris replied with a small smile, before looking down at her watch. "It's a miracle you made it early. It's only six am."

"Well, I was awake for school, but since I knew you guys were arriving today, I decided to ditch the morning half and attend later on or something." Iris told her sister. Then, turning to Doumeki, she said; "I hope Haris wasn't much of a bother, Doumeki-kun."

"Ah, not quite." the stoic archer shrugged. "And Watanuki?"

Iris' features stiffened, and with her finger busy with a strand of her chest-nut brown hair, she replied; "Well, he's at school right now. Never been better since you left, I guess."

Haris glanced at Doumeki before she had her eyes rest on her twin. Something was up. But she was tired, and since it wasn't a good idea to discuss such things in public, she gestured to the line of taxi cabs waiting at the exit. "We better go to that Dimensional witch where Doumeki brought Watanuki," she said, then raising the bottle of poison in her pocket. "And give him this."

Doumeki was eyeing her, and she could feel the doubt and threat swimming in his eyes. He hadn't come along when she left to retrieve the potion from Theodore the alchemist, and since he was aware it was poison...well, he must be sick to his stomach.

Nevertheless.

What mattered was the spiders' death, and nothing more. If drinking the acid would pain Watanuki, she wouldn't mind. Why should she? After all, he was a burden not only for her but for Doumeki as well. Besides, if it weren't for him, Doumeki would have at least returned her feelings. Somewhat. And even if he didn't, at least she wouldn't have to be jealous over someone else. Watanuki meant nothing to her, period.

She could almost picture the spirit seer doubling over and spitting out blood and the dead spiders. Somehow, it made her want to smile.

-

Yuuko's shop came as a real surprise for her since it was her first time to lay her eyes on it. It was intricately designed in the utmost unworldly way, and as she stepped into the front lawn she could almost feel the energy swirling around her. Her steps were firm, though, her purpose set; when she reached the front porch, two children ran out the door and greeted her with big grins and flailing skirts and hair; they said in unison, "Welcome! The mistress is waiting!"

Haris cocked an eyebrow at the two, but Doumeki walked into the house after giving brief nods at the girls. Iris followed suit after glancing worriedly at her twin, but was held back for a moment when her sister held her hand.

"Let's go in together," Haris said, and though her face betrayed nothing at all, there was a hint of worry in her sleek hazel eyes. "Okay?"

And so they did. Hand in hand, the two made their way through the long corridors and past the swirling smoke; there came a voice from behind one of the paper walls, and with slight reluctance Haris brought her hand over the door and slid it open. Before them, sprawled somewhat lazily upon an elaborate divan, and dressed in a more intricately designed kimono, was Yuuko Ichihara herself. Haris could feel the power and knowledge mist around the woman, with only her beauty to rival such prowess. Doumeki was already seated before the said witch, and slowly Haris sat beside the archer with Iris next to her.

"You must be Haris and Iris Manson," began Yuuko, tracing an opium pipe between her fingers with an elegant thumb; "I am Yuuko Ichihara, Dimensional Witch and employer of Watanuki Kimihiro. I suppose you have something he needs, Haris?"

Haris was tempted to flinch at the mention of her name, but instead she withdrew the bottle of poison from her pocket. "He should drink this," she said. "And puke out the spiders afterwards."

"Hm," mused the Time witch, taking the bottle into her right hand, observing it with her mysterious crimson eyes. For some reason, Haris held her breath, and she could feel Doumeki tense beside her. Yuuko didn't say anything, but returned the bottle to Haris with a curt nod, then turned to accept the tray of sake and tea from the two children who had somewhat entered the room without anyone's notice. The silence continued long, with Yuuko pouring each of her guests some tea, until Doumeki decided to speak.

"How's Watanuki?" he asked, taking the warm cup before him, and bringing it to his lips. All the while, he had his gaze fixated on the Dimensional witch. "Has he been well?"

"To be honest, no." Yuuko said quietly. "He's been acting differently. Does it have anything to do with the monster inside him?"

It was Haris' turn to take a sip from her cup, and to look sober. "Monsters, actually." She paused. "The sooner we get him to drink this, the better."

Yuuko pursed her lips, fingering the white laces of her dark kimono, then reaching for the remote control of the television lying somewhere across her. Silently, she turned it on, and a news report about a bloody murder in an alleyway nearby flashed on.

They all watched in silence for a while, though Iris wasn't, only fiddling with her own jacket strings. When the news report ended, Haris was the first to speak.

"The murder was done with a pair of garden shears, correct?" she said to no one in particular.

Although Doumeki did not speak to her directly, he responded; "Yes, and the body was found in an alleyway not far off from Watanuki's apartment."

Even if she would have wanted to glare at the archer (maybe again he was only conversing with her since it was related somewhat to Watanuki), Haris noticed her twin take in a sharp breath, and with a comforting smile she placed an arm over her quivering sister. "Don't worry, they won't show the body." She said quietly.

But Iris was not taken by her words, and started to shake her head. All the while, she did not say anything.

There was something incredibly wrong here.

-

It felt so different to be lounging in a Dimensional witch's shop all day, all the more with the said witch smoking at your side. Haris was sprawled on the floor, her legs spread out before her, wearing nothing but the usual vest jacket and loose jeans she had since earlier. Yuuko had offered to lend her a kimono, but she had politely declined- she had long learned ago that clothes like such did not suit her, nor was she comfortable in them.

If it weren't for the afternoon sun and the fresh breeze that occasionally swept a little harder at time, she would have gagged at the thick fumes of opium coming from the Time witch's pipe. It didn't carry any particular unpleasant smell, of course, but it wasn't normal oxygen, and Haris wasn't used to smoke- if she was to be really honest with it, she couldn't bear dark and thick fumes. She hated the way it obscured and hid things from view, and how it came to snake into her throat and choke her as if there was an invisible hand grasping at her neck. She hated, despised, and avoided smoke.

So as the Dimensional witch continued to breathe into her opium pipe and release swirling purple fumes, Haris felt somewhat drained and intoxicated. Such signs were evident at the way she laid her head on her arms, the way her eye lids dropped a notch, and the way her mouth refused to shut fully. She wasn't comfortable with looking like this, but she wasn't in any position to say so, or she didn't feel like it. Besides, she felt vulnerable this way, and it reminded her of too many things at a single moment. That wasn't, and would never be, a comforting thing to face.

Despite the rather uncomfortable circumstances, she enjoyed the scene of tranquility before her; the cool wind caressed her face whenever it passed by, also carrying with it the intoxicating smell of the opium. She felt somewhat at peace with the sounds playing before her- the symphony of birds and the rustle of leaves, to be accurate, and even the soft scratches of pencil against paper as her sister Iris worked on a sketch she wanted to cosplay sometime soon was soothing. She allowed herself a sigh, but it was one of relaxation and not of anything else.

A soft tinkle of glass, a pouring of liquid, and the presentation of a small porcelain disk broke her from her reverie.

It was Yuuko. "Do you drink?" She asked, handing the short-haired girl the disk of alcohol before settling herself with her own. "It's sweet, but I'm sure you've already tried drinking this."

No I haven't, Haris wanted to say, but instead she took the cup gratefully and helped herself to its content. It was warm and sweet, yes, and it left a satisfying sensation dwelling in her mouth. "It's good." She complimented quietly, sitting up.

"Of course it is," smiled the Dimensional witch, "I made sure of that personally."

Haris nodded, pouring herself another cup. "I suppose you want to discuss something with me?" She asked.

"Obviously," was the reply; "First of all, Watanuki had been acting entirely strange in your absence. He's...well, he's more than strange, actually." A pause. "He's been terrifyingly different."

"Aah, as I have said, and as you've already known, it's the monsters. They're controlling him as we speak. Sometimes it's really Watanuki we see, but most of the times it isn't." Haris allowed herself another cup. "And gods, think of all the things those monsters inside him can have him do. It'll be a riot."

Yuuko, her face changed, stared at her companion. "Well, I can't disagree with that." She downed a cup. "I had consulted with an artifact, and lo, it's not exactly a bright future we have here." She gestured to the pale blue skies and drifting clouds with the cup in her hand; "Despite what we see."

Haris fiddled with her cup. It wasn't surprising to find out that there were probably more troubles in the future, since now it wasn't looking good at all. She glanced (although briefly) at the stiff form of Doumeki- who was sitting before the table with a thick book in hand, his back to her- and allowed herself to nod. "Yes," She replied. "Despite what we see."

Yuuko turned to see what had taken up Haris' attention, and realizing it was the stoic archer, she leaned in closer to whisper: "Something happened, yes?"

Haris sighed, moving her gaze away from the man who had attracted so many feelings from her, and away from the mysterious woman looming over her. She wasn't the type who'd blurt out all her problems to a stranger, and though Yuuko wasn't entirely mistrusted, it didn't feel like a good idea, and Yuuko wasn't really keen on finding out. The said witch pulled away, getting to her feet, the bottles of sake and her own disk forgotten at the folds of the draping fabric of her kimono. "Don't pick the flames, Haris." She said quietly, frowning sadly at the short-haired girl before her; "Do not force what cannot be."

Haris watched the Time witch go, pursing her lips and damning hitsuzen to hell.

-

The skies had turned a shade darker when she chose to finally confront him.

She had passed Doumeki in the hallway- as expected, he didn't say anything else, perhaps too busy with the bowl of food in his hands or too annoyed at her to acknowledge her presence. Whatever the reason, she had grabbed his wrist, pulling him towards her, fixing him with a burning glare. Doumeki returned her gaze, unaffected, and they stood in silence for a while.

She was the first to speak. "I don't like being at fault," she told him, her arms trembling slightly and her voice hinting emotion; "But I always find myself in such a position."

Doumeki neither said anything nor indicated any movement that he wanted to get away from her touch, but then again, it wasn't entirely a good thing. His nonchalance only succeeded in infuriating her all the more, and before she knew it, she was in tears.

"And I can't help it," she sobbed, her head still held high, her wet eyes searching his. "So help me."

He raised a hand and gently pried her fingers surround his wrist. "If you know you shouldn't," he said quietly, tone balanced; "Then don't."

She frowned, but in a while her lips curved into a smile. "But I want to," she mouthed, then wrapped her arms around his neck before he could protest.

She was already pulling him down to a kiss when--

-

Watanuki stepped into the shop without any greeting or whatsoever to the woman standing at the end of the hallway, somewhat confronting him.

"Doumeki's back, and so is Haris." Yuuko stated blankly. "I thought it'd be nice if you knew."

The spirit seer didn't smile, as he normally would, but instead walked past the Dimensional witch and into another room. Iris was there, reading a book on costumes, when the door opened and the bespectacled boy entered without a word.

"A-ah, Watanuki-kun," she said, forcing a smile, as she got up to her feet and walked back from the approaching spirit seer; "Is something the matter?"

Watanuki smiled this time, eerily and maliciously. Iris only had enough time to lean away as something cold and sharp pressed threateningly against her throat, drawing from her a piercing scream and--

-

-- Haris' lips only brushed softly against his, but stayed like that as someone screamed.

The sound brought home Haris' common sense, and she whispered her twin's name before disappearing around the corner, obviously towards the sound. Doumeki did not dare to allow himself spare time and quickly ran to the source at once, bolting after the short-haired girl.

As expected, Yuuko was already there. She had Watanuki hacking away in her arms, one hand clutching at a bottle of table salt; quickly, Haris went to her sister and enclosed the quivering teen in her embrace.

The bespectacled boy stumbled towards the archer who had only recently gotten there, crocodile tears in his eyes. Yuuko did her best to hold the boy back- but Doumeki's grip was strong, and since he was too concerned about the spirit seer, he ignored the protests Iris was screaming at him and the smile spreading upon Watanuki's face.

Pain. It was the only thing evident right then, even as he clutched at his stomach and the sounds around him registered as only a blur; he stumbled unsteadily on the floor, catching a glimpse of the red liquid staining the front of his shirt and his hands, and suddenly nothing mattered anymore. Goodbye, he thought, as the pain became too much to handle. Goodbye-

Meanwhile, Haris had pounced at Watanuki at the first chance she could get, knocking him down onto the floor and hitting him with a series of blows until Yuuko and Iris could pry her off. She realized she was crying. A disheveled and bruised Watanuki lay at her feet, eyes slightly open and provoking, and it took her every ounce of her strength to keep herself from pummeling his pretty face into a pulp.

"Haris," Yuuko's voice came, loud and demanding; "Haris, bring Doumeki to a guest room. Iris, prepare the futon, treat his wounds. Maru and Moro will be with you shortly," she nodded at the twins hurrying to bring a weakened Watanuki away. "I will deal with him."

Haris nodded, pushing the bottle of poison into the witch's waiting hands, before turning towards Doumeki and supporting him with all her weight to drag him carefully into a room Iris had left to prepare; she could feel her hands tremble and shake under his superior height and weight, but she held still, holding him close.

"Doumeki," she whispered, tears still coursing down her cheeks; "Doumeki!"

For a moment, he stirred; he opened an eye, searching her face, and she could feel herself tremble with an all too familiar emotion- anger- as the name he had been meaning to say died on his lips.

Watanuki.

-

A/N: OH GODS IT'S CHAPTER NINE. Something strange had happened only recently: I checked my email and saw that someone had submitted chapter nine without my permission. It's not entirely wrong, yeah, but that copy was…well, it wasn't fixed yet. So I'm resubmitting. I bet the culprit was a friend of mine who cared too much but thought too little- AND YES I'M TALKING ABOUT YOU MICHAEL, YOU ASS. Haha. Somebody tell him I love him before dying. xP

Anyway, notes. I figured people would try to kill me after graciously pairing off Haris with Doumeki, so I would like to clear this out- NO, they're NOT ending up together, for Christ's sake. Haris is a character of mine from an original, called 'Monster Twins' (or something of the sort, since I've never really had a hand for titles), and she's supposed to end up with someone she deliberately hates. So NO, Doumeki's not hers. But a little teen angst plus adultery is good, yes? And sexy. I HAVE ISSUES.

Sorry it took me some time to correct this though, I'm sure by now you guys have read it. SO I'M SORRY. The exams have just finished and after some time of studying my ass off, well, I didn't bother A&O for a while. I'm so mean. DX

Besides that, the usual. Reviews and rants always welcome. Always. xD


	10. Eyes open

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: Plainly dou/wata; a one-sided dou/haris; the usual cast and my OC characters (I don't know if I'm planning to add any more characters, heck, these people are good enough. 8D);

Rating: T for now (should I raise it now? Oh well, the blood isn't that bad. xD)

Disclaimer: I only own what's mine; xxxHolic, sadly, is not one of them.

**-**

**Eyes open **

-

_All I want to do is to stay with you_

_So will you let me do so then?_

_The future is hazy and the skies are blue_

_Look out with your eyes open_

-

In truth, he thought he was dead at first. The lack of colors and sounds compelled him to believe that he was in some other place then, somewhere barren and lifeless, and that maybe he would never see anybody again. Even Watanuki, despite his close ties towards the spiritual realm. It had been greatly alarming at first, but being who he was, he found himself accepting his new-found destiny with only a mere grunt, a nod of the head. Somehow, dying didn't really bother him.

He started walking. Well, he wasn't really sure if he WAS walking, since there were no sounds coming from his steps and there was no visible plane to walk on to, but he was moving anyway. The darkness around him was endless; it was always the same thing wherever he turned, and there was no indication of any direction of some sort. He continued moving forward though, since there wasn't anywhere else to go- there was just some sort of a call leading him to where he was going, wherever it was, and as he was praying it to be heaven a bright light shone upon him and then-

-he was awake. He was on a laid-out futon on the floor, with the orange glow of late noon illuminating his slightly-irritated-yet-blank features. He raised an arm to cover his eyes, sighing as he did so. What he had couldn't be called a nightmare- he had, after all, faced it with a somewhat morbid reverence, as if it would not have damaged anyone, even if it was true.

The soft lighting around him was enough to illuminate certain things hiding in the dark, and though he was practically expecting it, the figure of a sleeping Haris Manson on the sofa leaning on the wall still managed to take him by surprise. He had been used to quite enough admirers that he knew very well that one kiss was enough, no matter how passionate. Whatever happened between them during their short trip was, well, rather one-sided and uncalled for, even if he had to admit that he did nothing to stop her of the sort.

Which somehow brought about guilt, but then again, he was so used to having to hide his emotions that he might as well not be feeling it at all. And plus the fact that Watanuki himself had stabbed him in the gut- he could feel no hatred towards the boy, since he never did in the first place. He felt like he was accepting the wound as some sort of punishment for not being there for him and tagging along someone else, just as easily had he accepted the vague sense of after death in his earlier dream.

He was about to push himself off the bed when another female entered the room- one who was always so distant, so terribly hard to reach, but he had never bothered anyway. She, unlike all women he had ever met, who had a distracting taste for provoking clothes, stood by the doorway once again with an almost inviting set of fabric and a smug look on her face. Of course, he had always been pretty decent- no matter how Watanuki insisted on labeling him a pervert- and he took no charms nor desire radiating from the woman and, despite her teasing look, she would not have it the way either. She was standing there, looking dangerously irresistible to anyone normal, but to Doumeki she was just a Time Witch who had privacy-invading issues.

"Ah, Doumeki-kun, a pleasant day to you," she said rather casually as if her issues were being looked over, and Doumeki was too polite and too uninterested to not comply; "I take it your hungry?"

Doumeki allowed himself to nod, not sparing anyone the lack of his conversation skills. From behind the layers of skirts trailing down Yuuko's legs came an over joyous Maru and Moro, both having a tray of something edible in their hands. The two squealing children placed the meal on Doumeki's lap, who immediately started to dig in.

"It's been a day," she said as the twins left the room; "Your injury is healing well. Maybe later you can leave the bed and be on your feet."

"Hm," was all Doumeki could say, biting into the crisp sukiyakidon; "Is there a price for the healing?"

Yuuko brought a hand to her mouth and laughed somewhat haughtily, "Ohoho! Doumeki-kun, am I really like that?" A pause, and when it was clear the archer had no intention of replying, too busy with his food, she added; "Besides, it's the ever so kawaii Iris-chan who'd done the healing. I was but a kind provider for the bandages, the food, and the bed."

Doumeki glanced briefly at the sleeping figure near him. "And Haris?"

Yuuko's eyes were half-lidded with a tiny tinge of sadness, and her smile was somewhat forced. "She's been keeping watch of you all day," she whispered. "She even dealt with Watanuki, and now he's back to normal."

The archer held his gaze with the Time witch, and the two were held in silent enchantment for a while, each equally mysterious to the other. After some time though, the silence broke.

"If it makes you feel better, Watanuki had not been acting on his own," Yuuko stated, turning to leave; "But I suppose you know that already."

Doumeki placed the tray on his lap beside him, making a movement to leave the bed, swinging his legs downwards to meet the cool feel of wood beneath his feet. "Hn," He allowed himself to say.

Yuuko just watched him as he slipped pass her through the doorway. She knew, as well as he did, that when it came to Watanuki, there was no stopping the stoic archer. His loyalty and concern brought a smile back to her slender face, and she even told him as he left, "He's at the front porch. He's been wanting to apologize ever since he came back to his senses."

Doumeki hid a smile as he headed towards the direction said. Silly Watanuki.

-

A long time ago, perhaps before any of this harum-scarum had ever happened, Doumeki had always looked at Watanuki with a somewhat skeptical view- mostly about how a person like him, weak and frail and white and entirely human, be of some delicious treat to the supernatural entities that had long committed themselves to having a piece of such 'delicacy', when any human being- him being counted- can see how ordinary Watanuki appeared. Well, of course he wasn't- anybody given the gift to actually see the spirits littering around the streets could never be called ordinary- but there wasn't anything special to see in the spirit seer, optically viewed, of course.

Even now, after so much tasks and near-death experiences they had together, Doumeki can't still figure out what it is Watanuki had within him that spirits find very attracting, and why in hell they wouldn't- and couldn't- find anybody else to prey on. It's obviously not because the archer can't find any reason and grows tired of saving the spirit seer- hell, he would never ever grow tired of it, since all he wants is to be with the boy till death do us part- but because Watanuki, weak and frail and white and entirely human Watanuki, would soon slip easily beneath his fingers, because maybe he never belonged to this world in the first place.

And he's scared of that. He doesn't want to imagine a future without a flailing bespectacled boy beside him. In fact, the very thought of such a possibility caused him to hurt; that's why he had always been sacrificing, why he always had been there no matter what.

But the future, coated in hitsuzen, will always remain murky and unsure, like the deep dark parts in the ocean; one day, hitsuzen will take him away, and Doumeki will be forced into a situation without Watanuki, and what would happen then?

So, in all simplicity of a boy raised in a temple, Doumeki Shizuka satisfies himself by taking what he can get.

The spirit seer was sitting with his knees under his chin, watching the last rays of the sunset flit about behind the trees, coloring the skies with a reddish warmth; Doumeki made his way beside the boy, sitting down with a leg up and the other hanging down, making sure to brush his fingers ever so slightly against the spirit seer's own.

"D-doumeki!" Watanuki blushed, bringing his hand away. "You sickening bastard, sneaking up on me like that, I hope that one day your sneaking would give me a heart attack and you would die of guilt and shame for causing a pathetic death to a poor little boy like me-"

"Watanuki," Doumeki said, cutting across; though he honestly missed Watanuki's usual tirades, there was no time for that. "How are you?"

A small intake of breath, a rustle of clothes. Watanuki averted his attention towards his feet, wiggling his toes as if to entertain him. His was the voice laced with embarrassment and remorse; "I'm okay," was the muffled reply.

Doumeki allowed silence take place, all the while smiling secretly to himself. Before him, the stars were beginning to peek from behind the darkening curtains of the early evening sky, and he turned his gaze upwards and thanked the gods for the moment he was experiencing right then, knowing full well that it might only be a tough break after everything that had happened, but he was okay with that. Every moment he had with Watanuki would always be treasured, after all.

There's a soft sniff coming from beside him, followed by a couple more, and soon he realized that it was actually coming from the boy with him. The bony shoulders were shaking, his whole frame riddled with a series of tremors; he brought his hands to both sides, slowly tilting the trembling boy to him, forcing him to lean on his shoulder and cry.

"I'm sorry," Watanuki whispered in between hiccups; "I'm sorry, so so sorry."

After each apology, Doumeki allowed the bespectacled boy a few responsive one-word sounds, ranging from "Hm," to "Ah," and "Sure," respectively. What Watanuki did not know and forced to deny was the fact that Doumeki had long forgiven him, as soon as the blade left his stomach. The boy was facing so much right then, it only seemed merciful to grant him such forgiveness. Not that he never did deserve it in the first place anyway.

Watanuki adjusted his face on the fabric of the archer's yukata, after a good long cry. He liked the feeling of safety and warmth coming from the other's body, but as he was drifting off to sleep, Doumeki said, "Idiot."

Immediately, the spirit seer started spazzing out, leaning back as much as possible as not to hit Doumeki; as a fist came down an inch close to the archer's face, the taller boy's hand came to holding the other's wrist in place, and Watanuki was about to say or scream something when a pair of insistent lips met his and suddenly nothing really mattered anymore.

Or at least, for the first few seconds. Then something did matter- it was how he should angle his face to better align with Doumeki's; it was how far he should lean back as to not be thoroughly laid upon, but well, that bit was slightly impossible, and he found himself on his back and the big archer on top of him; what mattered too was how annoying his clothes were starting to be, and how he wanted- desperately- to pry them off. What mattered the most, though, was the simple fact that he was once again kissing Doumeki, and once again it was quite obvious that neither of them had any intention of letting off.

Well, everything started to get hazy after that, but if anyone was to ask Watanuki for an honest answer, he would have replied with "Well, that night was special, AND STOP LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT YOU WEIRDO" or something of the sort. Basically though, as would all slightly dignified romance movies would have it, there were brief flashes of lips and skin and...Well, something more intimate than that. And anything intimate always had people feel like days had passed, but as reality would have it, it may very well be a span of a few minutes.

So it wasn't quite surprising for Doumeki to realize that it had only taken them fifteen minutes at large to fully vent out, and that they had been doing it on the front porch, where any normal human passerby or sneaky on-lookers were bound to catch sight of such a dubious deed, but then again, there wasn't really anybody watching them. Not that it bothered him anyway.

And maybe it did, but then Doumeki wasn't known to be someone visibly affected by any of his emotions- though in sex the grunts came in more frequent and the flush refused to leave at all- so he let it slide, poking the exposed thigh of the spirit seer with a steady pointer finger, drawing out a completely satisfying growl of irritation that seemed too normal and out-of-place right then and there.

Watanuki let himself open an eye, but what greeted him refused to enter his all-too-tired-yet-satisfied train of thought, so as he succumbed to sleep once again he barely heard what Doumeki had to say.

"Idiot."

And he mentally added a note to sock the bastard in the morning.

-

There were some occasions when Doumeki deemed to be an inconsiderate person, no matter how much sacrifices did the said archer offer him. And though any normal being would agree that Watanuki was very stubborn to admit that NO, Doumeki is NOT an inconsiderate person, the spirit seer would have replied to that as "WELL YOU HAVEN'T SEEN HIM WITHOUT HIS CLOTHES ON" or something relatedly lewd like that.

Reality is a cruel thing against a person in denial; for as the soft beams of light trickled over his face, coloring the pale features with a bright yellow, it was quite obvious that Doumeki was concerned enough to not let him spend the night on the front porch, half-naked. In fact, as the spirit seer struggled to get off bed, he noticed that he was clothed in a different yukata and clean boxers, and that the futon he was sleeping on was laid properly on the floor, and that the covers had been on him before he kicked them away.

Watanuki drew in a sharp breath- the kind that clearly stated "FINE you win" - as his hand traveled to his side, searching for his glasses. Well, that was one thing Doumeki forgot about: his glasses.

Mumbling about inconsiderate idiots and stupider idiots forever in denial, he left the room, all the while with his arms stretched out slightly in front of him and him squinting a bit to get a better view, though with the eye Doumeki had given him, it wasn't as extremely impaired as before. Said jerk suddenly appeared before him, but just as silently, so Watanuki was to blame when he slammed into the taller boy.

"You ass," Watanuki hissed, holding his fists above Doumeki's chest, face hovering below the archer's chin. If it weren't for the slight tension in the smaller boy's body, the whole form could have been quite romantic. Quite.

"Morning to you too," Doumeki said, in some sort of sigh. When the spirit seer looked up though, the big oaf was smiling (if a slight upturn of lips were called as such). He found himself lost in the familiar amber eyes for a moment, but then as reality kicked in he started behaving very Watanuki-like, much to Doumeki's disappointment (but the smile stayed, because at the same time, he was greatly amused to see the spirit seer fluster and spaz around like this in his arms).

He instinctively took hold of one of the flailing fists, just like he did the night before- and, also like the night before, Doumeki leaned in to kiss him, though this one was more of a "good-morning-sunshine-the-world-says-hello" rather than "shut-up-and-let-me-fuck-you" kind.

As soon as they did start kissing passionately though, there was a small sound of gentle surprise behind them- and when the two turned to see who it was, Doumeki slightly surprise and sulky at the interruption and Watanuki flustered with indignance and something else, the familiar figure of Himawari Kunogi came into view.

"Himawari-chan! You're okay!" Watanuki said all too happily, after glaring daggers at the archer beside him. "I'm sorry we didn't visit you at all, things were going like hell around here-"

"That's alright, Yuuko-san told me everything." Replied a smiling Himawari-chan, clearly back to normal, and Yuuko exited the lobby to join them in the hallway with a smug look of FINALLY on her face; "My apologies for the kiss, Watanuki-kun. It brought you so much trouble." Kunogi added, this time looking worried.

"No no no, it's okay! You weren't yourself, Himawari-chan!" The spirit seer assured.

"Mou, nobody told me about you two though," Said Himawari, "I'm so thrilled to know that you guys are together now!"

"It's not what you think, this big oaf here is a pervert--!" Watanuki pointed at the archer beside him, who only raised his eyebrows in skepticism; "That kiss was purely accidental!"

"Come Himawari-chan, Iris is waiting for you in the garden," Yuuko said, turning to the said girl, all the while ignoring the spazzmic attacks Watanuki was throwing before them; "Let's leave these two alone."

Himawari nodded her approval, gave a short wave and a kind smile at the two boys, and left with the Time witch.

Watanuki puffed up his cheeks in anger. "You could've said something to hide it," he said sulkily.

"Why do we need to?" Doumeki asked in return, making a movement to enter the lobby and to leave the spirit seer to his chores. "I want waffles for breakfast."

"HELL I CARE FOR WHAT YOU WANT," He could hear Watanuki scream behind him, but he didn't take it for the truth. Knowing Watanuki, he would make his requests anyway, and he smiled.

As he slid the door close behind him, he was quite surprised to see Haris sitting somewhere in the middle of the room, drinking tea. She had been with Yuuko and Himawari earlier before, after all.

She raised her gaze, and the two stared at each other for quite a long while. A warning signal started to go in Doumeki's head, but he knew she wouldn't do anything as of now. Perhaps later. Perhaps never.

It wasn't over yet.

"Don't do anything stupid," he told her blankly, crossing the room and exiting towards the front porch of the house.

"I won't," was her reply, but he could feel the slight tinge of lie in her voice.

-

A/N: I get easily confused by the chapter numbers. Oh well. So Intermission should be labeled chapter 8 then, because I AM TOO LAZY to fix it. DX

Sorry if this took long. I changed the idea of writing something graphic because I would faint if I tried. I don't have proper training yet, so I shouldn't push myself too much. Oh well.

AND YES IT ISN'T OVER YET 8D I think it's up to thirteen, but still. Haha. I just hope chapter 11 (OMG DOUBLE DIGITS) wouldn't take as long, but it might, since I'm going to work on Parasite too. xD Why don't you guys read that while I'm gone? I've successfully finished and uploaded the first chapter to that and a oneshot, just to make up for the time. Oh well. Read and Review people. I greatly appreciate those who make themselves heard. xD No matter how screwed up the review is. Haha. AND YES MICHAEL I MEAN YOU SO I REPORTED YOURS AS SPAM. Anyway, action and blood for the next chapter, yippee! 8D See you then!


	11. Trouble

Title: Alpha and Omega

Anime: xxxHolic

Pairings/Characters: Plainly dou/wata; a one-sided dou/haris; the usual cast and my OC characters (I don't know if I'm planning to add any more characters, heck, these people are good enough. 8D);

Rating: T for now (should I raise it now? Oh well, the blood isn't that bad. xD)

Disclaimer: I only own what's mine; xxxHolic, sadly, is not one of them. Even the lyrics aren't. DX

**-**

**Trouble**

-

_Purr pussycat you have so many lives to live_

_Claws out dig deep and scratch away the skin_

_You know you own the night so go howl under the full moon_

_These streets are filled with killers and comic book goons_

-

Iris' hands were used to handling fabric and needles, and despite the fact that the costumes she made were complicated and expensive, she was really good at making them.

Her fingers slid in and out of the fabric in her hand as easily as it was to wear it, all the time humming contentedly as she worked. It was sometime near midnight, and usually she would prefer sleeping early- but not today. Haris had not arrived yet, and the said twin had no extra key to the house with her.

Vinx was already sleeping, and even from her position before the kitchen table, she could hear the low grunts of the said beast as it slept easily in the cold night. Iris risked looking outside the window- hoping to see the familiar figure of her sister- and found none.

A sigh escaped her lips, and gently she laid the clothing in her hand upon the wooden table before her. And to think that things were about to turn back to normal- but now, after everything that had happened at the Dimensional witch's shop, she saw Haris even less. Perhaps it was because of the obvious fact that Doumeki did not like her back- but hadn't she stated already that she didn't care?

Leaving the costume she was working on in the kitchen, she padded her way over to where her phone rested, and quickly dialed her sister's number.

It rung once, twice. Iris gripped the side of her phone with apprehension, praying to all the gods that would listen to keep her sister safe, for Haris was her family, damn it. Without her, how else would Iris live on?

And maybe the gods were listening, for after the third ring, her said twin picked up at last, and Iris was too happy to care if she sounded shaky over the phone. "Haris, what's keeping you? It's so late at night..."

Her sister sounded hurried. "Iris, I'll come home, don't worry. Shut the doors, lock the windows. Whatever happens, stay inside. Do you understand?"

Iris paused for a moment before voicing out her concern. "What do you...?"

"Make sure Vinx is outside, and that he never leaves the front of the house." Haris said quickly, and obviously there was no time for any protests; "You have to pay attention. Stay. In. The. House."

Iris nodded, and after realizing she was communicating over the phone, she added a quick "Yes."

Then the phone line went dead.

Iris was left staring at the receiver for a few moments, tempted to call again. Haris had never sounded so rushed in her life- and if she did, it was a rare occurrence too. The auburn-haired girl frowned in worry, a small crease forming in between her slim eye brows.

To actually request locking down the house...

She stared out the window where Vinx stood, seeing the dark silhouette of the family beast tense in the already shrouded background.

A lightning flashed, illuminating the insect eyes, intent and ready for action.

-

Haris had been walking down the dark streets towards the drive where their house stood when something fell behind her.

It was a loud, resounding noise- something a person as vigilant as she might find impossible to ignore. Shoulders tensed, she slowly looked back, her arms already extending a few inches off her sides. It was the kind of stance she pulled off whenever something caught her without a weapon since it was easy this way to tackle 'it' before it attacked.

Only except if the said 'it' was heavy or came in groups.

It was funny how the lamp posts refused to illuminate the patch of darkness seemingly trying to swallow the empty streets. Even funnier as to how the shadows danced with the light not moving at all. Narrowing her hazel eyes to slits, she took a wary step forward, with the other still behind her, ready to jump back if something snapped at her.

There came a low growl, and a series of tiny feet scampering in the darkness. Haris drew her attention away for a moment, her eyes searching the pavement and the streets for anything that can be used to whack monsters senseless, finding none. An irritated snort escaped her lips, and once it did, something sprang from the darkness.

She jumped back only a second earlier as claws pierced the ground she had been in, and an even shorter period of time to catch a glimpse of her pursuer- long dark hair and razor sharp teeth on an almost human face- before she turned around and broke into a run.

As she did so, she heard the scampering of feet once again following closely behind her, made more prominent by the silence around them and the surprising lack of oxygen in the air. She had to slow down soon to catch her breath, but with that thing hot on her heels, it wasn't a very wise thing to do. So she did what deemed appropriate- making a sharp turn and climbing over someone's backyard.

The wall was high enough, and though the barbed wires on the edges were worn and frayed, several thorns made their way into her skin especially as she hauled herself over- making sure to swing her legs high enough to avoid the edges- the tall granite walls.

She didn't wait to see if the monster would follow her, quickly running past the shrubs and trees that decorated the small lawn, using the car parked at the back to easily vault over the barbed walls by simply running atop it and using the new-found boost to jump over the lower wall. As her feet met the pavement, causing her body to slightly crumple in on herself, there was a loud crash and a sound of tangled limbs and scraped metal- well, that bought her some time.

She turned the street, skidding to a halt behind a large garbage bin, ignoring the unpleasant fumes coming from it. Squatting, she allowed herself to take in mouthfuls of air, willing her racing heart to return to normal as soon as possible. If she was going to face this alone, she would at least need to be a bit ready.

Then an idea came to her: what if the monster turns to Iris? What then? It obviously knew who to strike, after all, and it was no ordinary monster. She had not seen anything like it around the ordinary streets of Japan- monsters were entirely different from spirits, no matter how close they seem. Spirits were invisible to the ordinary eye unless if it chose to be seen- monsters were as clear as day to anyone who sees it. Period.

And the 'untamed' kind had a more rusty smell to them, like fresh blood.

As she dug her hand into the pocket of her jeans (ignoring the stinging pain in her hand) with the intent of warning her sister, her phone rang. Blinking at the slight convenience of it all, she extracted the phone and smiled in relief when she saw who had bothered to call- Iris, obviously.

She clicked the 'talk' button and held it to her ear, making sure to hunch as low as possible and to whisper.

"Haris, what's keeping you? It's so late at night..." Iris' voice was shaking.

Explanations could wait till later. Warn her first. "Iris, I'll come home, don't worry. Shut the doors, lock the windows. Whatever happens, stay inside. Do you understand?"

"What do you...?" Iris sure was persistent.

"Make sure Vinx is outside, and that he never leaves the front of the house." She paused for a quick glance. "You have to pay attention. Stay. In. The. House."

There was a slight pause, and then a small, "Yes."

Haris had only clicked the phone off when something hard slammed into the garbage bin hiding her from view.

-

There were two things that roused Doumeki in the middle of the night- two simple little things that were only new to him recently, really- when usually he was someone difficult to wake at all.

One was the lack of another body in his arms, a body so skinny and small that it never made itself known in the first place, but somehow without it he found it impossible to sleep comfortably. The other thing was the lack of another presence on the futon with him, which would usually have the missing body in a heap of blankets on it once the said body had given up on being a stuffed toy for anybody else. Blinking, Doumeki rose from his position, looking around- and as his amber eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room, his gaze fell upon the boy he sought for.

Clad in a very loose get-up of 'Doumeki's spare pajamas', Watanuki closely resembled a small child- which was funny really, and something worth to jibe at, weren't it for the tension in the boy's skinny frame. The pajama top barely hung from bony shoulders, the v-neck exposing pale collarbones and smooth skin underneath. The boy was sitting up, his legs splayed on each side, and Doumeki mentally took note of how the posture resembled a girl's- making sure to file the information away for future 'references'.

He crawled towards the form once he recognize the sad expression on the boy's face- one he usually wore when there was somebody getting hurt instead of him, someone who wasn't as lucky as to having an exorcist like Doumeki by his side. It was times like these when Watanuki would blame the world for directing misfortune on someone else who wouldn't have been on the spot if he were outside himself. Doumeki thought that such was rather selfish, something having him think that the bespectacled boy was a masochist, but in the end he couldn't bear branding the boy that. Besides, Watanuki was more of selfless anyway.

"Kimihiro," the archer called softly, putting a firm hand on an exposed white shoulder. Using first names was something to get used to.

Watanuki turned his head to lock eyes with Doumeki, smiling a bit. "Sorry. I was just...thinking."

"Of what?" Doumeki pressed, settling himself beside his companion and sitting up as he did so; "What's bothering you?"

Golden and blue eyes turned glassy, as if in thought. "There's something out there," he said simply.

Then someone was knocking on the apartment door.

-

Iris knew for a fact that Haris would never ever call for help, much less would she ask her own twin sister for guidance. It was always like that: Iris getting into trouble, Haris busting in with Vinx to save the day. Sometimes it was embarrassing enough to mention it over dinner.

And though Haris never rubbed it on her face, she could see the automatic tension in her sister's frame once it concerned Iris' safety.

It was irritating. The younger twin hated being a burden to anyone, even if it was clear that she couldn't handle it by herself. Haris had been increasingly tired over the past few days, especially after the incident at Yuuko's, and she found it absolutely disappointing that even little things like Iris' safety had to come first. Whatever was happening to her twin out there, and whatever the said twin told her to do only earlier, she had to try to come to her aid.

Of course, it was pretty obvious that she couldn't do it alone. The last time she had tried to tackle a monster with Vinx, she ended up being saved by her sister again, and it was shameful to think that she had only made things a lot difficult for a seemingly easy kill. She needed someone who was just as strong as her sister, and just as fierce- Doumeki.

Bothering the archer this late at night? Why, she would understand if the said man would shut the door in her face as soon as she tried for an explanation. Doumeki had no intention of having to do anything with Haris- that much she knew- and surely waking him at such an ungodly hour would at least cause her to be screamed at. Or something.

But she had to try. Haris sounded so terrible and scared over the phone even if the said girl would deny it. Twins always knew best, she guessed.

As soon as she finished securing every opening in their home, she left the front door and locked it behind her, patting the key in her jeans. She walked slowly over to Vinx, who was still sitting up straight as if waiting for something to appear,

"Vinx," Iris whispered, reaching up and pulling the circular head gently towards her. "Vinx, we need to get Doumeki. And save Haris. Will you let me?"

"Not safe," grumbled the beast in reply, and Iris shivered as a particularly cold wind passed, as if confirming the statement said.

"We have no choice," Iris prompted, tugging slightly. "Haris is in trouble, I can feel it. Please Vinx." She directed the insect-like eyes to her face and they stared at each other, Iris seeing herself reflected in every prominent square in the monster's eyes. "Please."

Vinx slowly nodded, bending low so the girl could climb aboard safely. "They're probably at Watanuki's," she said, once settled. "We should start there. It's only two blocks away."

For an airborne monster like Vinx, two blocks would only take barely a minute. Vinx landed safely before the apartment building, Iris jumping off of him and running full speed to climb the stairs. Once she reached the room number where Watanuki was staying in, she knocked, making sure to keep it constant enough to be heard despite the lack of ferocity.

She was about to give up when the door finally opened, revealing a tired-looking Doumeki.

"Ah, Doumeki-kun, my apologies. It's just that Haris is in trouble and I didn't know who to turn to, I know Vinx would help me but-" She was help up by a raised hand.

"Explain later." the archer looked back to see Watanuki approaching him, slippers in hand. Doumeki then turned to the girl with a nod. "Let's go."

Iris wanted to hug them both at that point.

-

Haris quickly rolled out of the way as the garbage bin threatened to pin her to the wall, landing unsteadily on her feet. By the dim light, she could make out the same features she had seen on the monster a while ago- and a few more add-ons too.

In fact, it was terrifyingly familiar. The pale face and insane-looking eyes, rotting sharp teeth and thick dark hair- she felt as if she had seen it somewhere, minus the gory features. There was no time to think about it, though, since the monster was intent on killing her right then and there.

Another blade came into contact with the gravel where she had stood. Cursing silently, she got to her feet after an unsuccessful backwards cartwheel, with the beast hissing angrily before her. She couldn't run or hide forever- she had to deal with it, once and for all.

She bolted to her left as the monster took an unsteady swing at her, the cool blade almost grazing her bare shoulder. She skidded to a halt and bent to pick up the dented wide lid of the garbage bin, and as the monster pounced towards her in another attack, she swung the lid at full force and it came into hard contact with the beast, causing it fall back into a wall.

Panting, she broke into a run once more, turning left to where the river was located. She slid down the slanted walls towards the river bank, bending to wash away the blood flowing from her open wounds on her hands. The water was cool, and the coldness lessened the pain, but she had no time to enjoy the relaxation. Soon, the monster would smell her blood, and eventually follow her down here.

She only had a vague plan as to how to get rid of her pursuer, one that needed the river and a metal pipe. She looked around, knowing full well that there was a litter of construction metals somewhere under the bridge, and approached the whole lot once found to look for a metal rod.

It was as if lady luck had finally started to shine upon her, for there was a three-inch thick pipe underneath the mass of cardboard and wood. As soon as she stood with her weapon in hand, a loud monstrous noise reverberated in the air, and something like nails down a chalkboard as her opponent finally made it down to the river.

As expected, the weight of the monster was too much for it to properly saunter off to a stop after sliding down the slanted walls towards the river, and it stood almost off-balanced by the edge. Wasting no time, Haris ran back to the beast, hitting it with a hard blow on the human-like face. The force was enough for it to be completely put off its balance and fell into the cold waters of the river, its blood-curdling scream echoing in the night.

Haris watched the series of struggles before jumping into the water herself, metal rode straight down the monster's open mouth, legs apart and face contorted into a somewhat sadistic smile. Another win, she could say.

The water flooded in around her, and as she opened her eyes she could see that her opponent had finally ceased moving. With the pipe down its throat, it floated lazily downwards, causing the dirt around them to swirl around as it hit the bottom. From this point, Haris could see clearly who her opponent truly was, or at least what it looked like when it was alive.

Dark thick hair. The pale features and zombie-like face weren't much of a help, but the hair was enough for her to recognize him.

He was the murder victim on the streets back then, the one they saw on TV once they came back from their trip to Canada. The police had shown a picture of the victim on air, and a few days later it was all over the newspapers that the said victim's body disappeared from the wake it was held in.

Someone was obviously playing necromancer.

Haris swam back to the river bank, walking towards the stairs upward with shaking legs. She was tired. Oh, so tired.

And, as if the gods were mocking her, she was forcefully pinned down by a mass of hissing things- she instantly knew what they were, and proceeded to blocking the entrance to her body by shutting her mouth, but the spiders had no intention of possessing her. Yet.

They seem to be following a leader- and as she was waiting for sounds that might belong to a gigantic spider, all she got was a brief chuckle.

Human?

She opened her eyes to see who had the nerve of laughing at her- ignoring the gross sight of thousands of spiders crawling over her skin and the feel of web and tiny feet- and saw before her a young man dressed in a formal suit, with long dark hair pulled back to a ponytail and a gentle touch of a goatee and beard on his smooth chin. His appearance deemed rather deceiving, though.

"Who are you?" Haris asked, her face devoid of emotion- of fear.

"They call me 'Ousama'," said the man gently, smiling at her. "But you can call me Darius, Haris Manson."

She was too pissed and too distraught for jokes. "What do you want?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Darius said, raising his hands in a shrug; "You killed one of my creations. I need a replacement. And a mighty one at that," he bent down to leer into her face, but she refused to quiver as his crimson orbs met her own hazel gaze. "But then again, you are worth far more than what our dear Watanuki-kun had given me,"

"Dream all you want," Haris said through clenched teeth. "I won't be as easy to kill."

"Perhaps," the man leaned back and snapped his fingers, and in a moment she was actually being swallowed alive by the mass of spiders, drawing from her a series of half shouts. "But who said I wanted you dead anyway?"

"Let her go!"

-

A/N: FINALLY. It took me forever to properly arrange my ideas into this chapter. Sorry it took me so long, people. Besides, it's almost over. Almost. 8D

I'm too lazy to proof-read or anything. Maybe I need a beta-reader. XwX;


End file.
